Hong Kong has one of the most distinctive and beautiful skylines in the world, with hills rising up to Victoria Peak and Victoria Harbour as a beautiful backdrop to an impressive lineup of skyscrapers. Hongkong and Shangai Bank, designed by world famous architect Sir Norman Foster, is one of the most distinctive and recognized skyscrapers in the world. Measuring 179 meters (587 feet) and 47 stories tall, the new HSBC building stands on the same site as the original 1865 bank building at 1 Queen’s Road Central, Central and Western District, Hong Kong. The new building was commissioned in 1980 and construction was completed in 1985. At the time of the skyscraper’s completion, it was the most expensive building ever constructed in the world at a cost of $668 million.
The development project posed some unique challenges to the British architect Sir Norman Foster. The bank needed a much bigger building but it had to fit on the original site. The building’s interior layout needed to not only be flexible but also meet high technology requirements and a fast growing organization’s present and future needs. Also the construction of the building needed to be completely quickly.
The solution that Foster came up with was to have various components of the building built off site. Different parts of the building were manufactured in various parts of the world. Flooring and the aluminum cladding were brought in from the United States, the structural steel from Great Britain, and the service modules came from Japan. All of the different components had to all fit together on the site, which required an unprecedented level of engineering precision. By locating the services in pre-fabricated models and using bridge-engineering techniques, Foster was able to eliminate the necessity of a central core. This created large, open floor areas, which was crucial to the efficiency and flexibility of the building.
One of the most striking features of the Hongkong and Shanghai Bank is the 170-foot atrium that rises from the ground level up eleven stories of the building. The banking areas are located around the atrium and accessed by escalators. At the top of the building’s atrium is a bank of gigantic mirrors. The mirrors form a computer-controlled sun scoop that reflects sunlight into the plaza and atrium.
Around the atrium are open plan offices, which allow the bank’s staff to work under natural lighting conditions. Elaborate computer systems manage the building’s temperature and lighting. Acoustic engineering controls the noise levels.
The Hongkong and Shanghai Bank also follows good feng shui principles by having a direct and unimpeded view of Victoria Harbour. It is believed that those with a direct view of a body of water have a better chance to prosper than those who do not. The building is also one of 18 Hong Kong buildings to participate in the Hong Kong Tourism Board’s “A Symphony of Lights,” which features a nightly light, music and laser show.
The Hongkong and Shangai Bank in Hong Kong has set incredibly high standards for not only the banking industry but architectural design and project development construction as well. The building is an icon on Hong Kong’s majestic skyline and will service the bank’s requirements well into the twenty-first century.