Urban Habitat - Single Site Scale Winner: DUO Tower, Singapore
Ole Scheeren
Principal
Buro Ole Scheeren, Hong Kong
Irene Yong
Director
Beca, Singapore
A Porous Landscape That Drives Pedestrian Circulation
The DUO twin towers connect with Singapore via a 24-hour public plaza, forming a new civic nexus for the city. The design subtracts circular carvings from the allowable building volumes, in a series of concave movements that generate urban spaces. The porous landscape at ground-level mixes gardens and landscaped leisure zones, linked to the rest of the city through multiple connections above and below ground. Vehicular traffic is lifted off the ground by a series of dedicated ramps, to allow uninterrupted pedestrian circulation. Extensive landscape areas at the ground levels, elevated terraces, and rooftops provide accessible green space equal to 100 percent of the site area.
The development incorporates environmental strategies through passive and active energy-efficient design and naturally-ventilated spaces. The building’s orientation is optimized to prevailing sun and wind angles, while the concave building massing captures and channels wind flows through and across the site, fostering cool microclimates within the shaded outdoor spaces. Its vertical façades rise skywards, while a net-like hexagonal pattern of sunshades reinforces the dynamic concave shapes. The tower volumes are further sculpted to feature a series of cantilevers and setbacks that evoke choreographed, kinetic movements of the building silhouettes.
Office tenants have access to outdoor skygardens, retail and lifestyle conveniences, and cycle-friendly facilities including parking lots, lockers, and showers. The complex offers connectivity to the central business district, Marina Bay, and other areas, with direct underground pedestrian networks to the Bugis Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) station, and direct access to the airport.
