Top of the World
The Haier Global Creative Research Center in Qingdao, China, is a 35,500-square-meter building designed by DC Alliance and Snøhetta. Built in 2016, the center houses co-working space, a library, a business institute, and an auditorium. Additionally, it provides open space for art and leisure, including an exhibition hall to showcase Haier Group's innovations, an art gallery, and an IMAX theater.
The building is inspired by the concept of a "mountain top," reflecting Qingdao's distinctive Lao mountain facing the ocean. The center's roof is designed as a landscape, with the northwest corner gently descending to meet the street and the other three corners rising to offer views of the ocean and beyond the horizon.
The project focuses on creating a new internet space, serving as an opportunity to open Haier's cultural complex product line. The use of a 600mm modular system helped rationalize the building's complex form.
The roof structure was designed with a two-layer system to create the building's "fifth elevation," adopting an air utilization system to reduce energy consumption. The entire project was done in BIM, ensuring rigorous control of each component and obtaining the LEED-NC Gold certification from the United States.
