The Lankuaikei Agriculture Development (LAD) Headquarters in Shanghai will be an 11-story terraced office building conceived as an agricultural oasis in a rapidly developing urban area of the city.
Located near the lake at the center of Lingang New Town, MVRDV’s design features a series of terraces that step down to a courtyard and the main pedestrian entrance on the north side. The terraces are clad in wood and covered in greenery, and they include a publicly accessible route to the top of the building. The building’s façade is a pleated arrangement of solar panels and glass.
A curving roof structure which follows the shape of the terraces covers the ensemble. On the southern part of the building, this structure supports solar panels, while on the north it is permeable, filtering sunlight but allowing rain to reach the terraces below. The terraces collect rainwater for use in functions such as toilets, as well as providing biodiversity and healthy working environments thanks to the greenery that extends all the way to the top floors.
Inside, the LAD headquarters offices take up 6,000 square meter on its upper levels, with 9,000 square meters of labs and co-working offices below. On the first and second floor, the building incorporates an adjustable auditorium and exhibition space. In its two basement levels, the building has a canteen and parking, but the “agricultural oasis” concept even extends below ground thanks to a number of voids which allow light, fresh air, and greenery to make their presence felt.
Through material selection and life- cycle analysis, the plan is for the building’s embodied carbon to be 40 percent lower than a typical comparable construction.
For more on this story, go to MVRDV.