Poly Greenland Plaza

The office complex, located in the centrally situated Yangpu District, consists of a composition of five office towers and lower commercial buildings along the busy Changyang Road. The vertically varied facades of the towers lend the ensemble a cohesive overall appearance. The development mediates between the different scales and functions of the surrounding neighborhood: the office towers, ranging from 50 to 100 meters in height, reflect the high-rise residential developments to the southeast, while the lower commercial buildings lining the street form a counterpart to the older industrial complexes north of Changyang Road.

Towards the street, the development establishes a clear urban boundary without closing itself off. Instead, the edges provide many points of access: generous plazas open out to the quarter and invite pedestrians to enter the landscaped interior. Sunken courtyards and bridges are used to link the different buildings with each other. This creates an open shopping arcade with many retail outlets on different levels. The flowing arrangement of the rounded pentagonal building volumes creates a diverse sequence of sunny and shaded areas at street level. Bridges lead to the shops on the second floor, whereas sunken courtyards provide access to the retail outlets at basement level with convenient access to the western underground railway network.

The envelopes of the buildings consist of curtain-wall facades with coated aluminum for the solid parts between the low-reflection insulating glazing, a design that ensures good energy conservation. Curved glazing at the building corners adds to the character of the ensemble; natural ventilation is achieved via opening casements behind decorative facade panels with ventilation slots on the sides. The nighttime illumination of the high-rise facades emphasizes the verticality of the office towers. The lighting is indirect and has been integrated in each vertical joint between the facade elements and the horizontal facade profiles that provide a visual vertical structure in the facades at different heights. The facades of the lower commercial buildings are emphasized by horizontal, linear lighting at each floor level.