 |
| image by Daniele Domenicali |
all information from http://www.mcarchitects.it/project/sieeb-1# and http://europaconcorsi.com/projects/13124-Mario-Cucinella-Architects-S-r-l--Sieeb-Sino-Italian
Building description
SIEEB building is the result of cooperation
between the Ministry for Environment and Territory of the Republic of
Italy and the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s
Republic of China. It is a platform to develop bilateral long-term
cooperation between the two countries in the fields of energy and the
environment and is a showcase for the potential for reducing C02 emissions in the building sector in China.
 |
| image by Daniele Domenicali |
This building has been realized on the Tsinghua University Campus in
Beijing and has been designed by the architect Mario Cucinella and the
Politecnico di Milano.
The SIEEB faculty building is located on the Tsinghua University Campus. It houses a Sino-ltalian education, training and research centre for environmental protection and energy conservation, offices and a 200 seat auditorium. It has a floor area of 20.000 m2 and is 40 meters high.
 |
| image by Daniele Domenicali |
This project is the result of an integrated design process with
collaboration between architects, consultants and researchers, a key
issue in the design of green buildings.
Architectural Concept
The design philosophy combines sustainable design principles and state of the art technologies to create a building that responds to it’s climatic and architectural context. The design uses both active and passive strategies through the design of its shape and of its envelope SIEEB to control the external environment in order to optimise the internal environmental comfort conditions.
 |
| image by Daniele Domenicali |
The building design has been assessed through a series of testing
and computer simulations of its performance in relation to its possible
shape, orientation, envelope, technological systems and so on, finding a
balance between energy efficiency targets, minimum C02 emissions, a functional layout and the image of a contemporary building.
The design found a way to integrate tested and proven components with innovative systems.
Envelope components, control systems and technologies employed in the SIEEB represent the state of the art of the innovative Italian production in the building sector.
 |
| image by Daniele Domenicali |
The building is closed and well insulated on the northern side that
faces the cold winter winds and it is more transparent and open towards
the south. On the east and west sides, light and direct sun are
controlled by a double skin façade that filters solar gain and
optimises the penetration of daylight into the office spaces.
Attractive green spaces, gardens and terraces are distinctive elements of the project. Cantilevered structural elements extend to the south, giving shade to the terraces
Architectural form
The SIEEB building takes shape from an analysis of the site and of the climatic conditions of the city of Beijing.
Located in a dense urban context, surrounded by 10 storey high buildings, the SIEEB
maximises the southern orientation of the site. The shape of the
building evolves from a series of tests and simulations on solar
radiation, overshadowing (studies developed by the researchers from the
Polytechnic of Milan) and it is strongly influenced by its expected
energy performances. The main starting points for the design team were a
symmetrical U-shaped courtyard building stepping downwards towards the
south.
 |
| image by Mario Cucinella |
The building is inserted in a square lot that measures around 60 m x
60 m. In section the floors step back at higher levels to maximise sun
penetration into the internal spaces and to give light and air to the
internal garden.
 |
| image by Mario Cucinella |
Vertical distribution is granted by two main staircases and lift
blocks located in the west and east wings; the two blocks also
contribute to the structural rigidity of the whole building.
 |
| image by Mario Cucinella |
 |
| image by Mario Cucinella |
 |
| image by Mario Cucinella |
In terms of functions, the SIEEB is
divided into two different parts. The lower part from level -1 to level
+1 represents the public area (main hall, exhibition spaces and an
auditorium), and it is physically connected with the street and the
pedestrian walkways. In order to give an easy accessibility to the
building, the ground floor is designed to be permeable along the
north-south axis. In the north side, a two-storey high opening façade
gives access through the building and lets the internal garden be
visible from the street and from the facing buildings.
 |
| image by Mario Cucinella |
The lower floors are complex in shape: ramps, passages, irregular
terraces and planted gardens, give the public spaces different
environments and perspectives. The upper floors, (from +2 to the top
floor), mainly occupied by offices and laboratories, have more regular
floor plans that change at each level to give space to open south facing terraces.
 |
| image by Mario Cucinella |
 |
| image by Mario Cucinella |
Envelope
 |
| image by Mario Cucinella |
The external envelope of the building plays a key role in the
environmental strategy in that different solutions respond to different
orientations.
The building is conceived as a protective shell towards the north, instead opening south towards to the sun.
 |
| image by Mario Cucinella |
The northern facade, which has the main entrance from the campus, is
designed to be almost entirely opaque and highly insulated to protect
the building from the strong cold winter winds. The blue colour of the
facade creates a strong architectural image for the building.
 |
| image by Mario Cucinella |
Different systems of ventilated facades are used in the internal
skin, facing the garden, and in the east and west outer envelope. South
facades, shaded by the cantilevering floors and structures are treated
to be more transparent.
 |
| image by Mario Cucinella |
The east and west facades of the building are clad with a double
skin composed of a simple curtain wall, based on a pattern of
transparent/ opaque modules and an external silk-screen facade. Simple
horizontal silk-screen lines if different densities give the building an
elegant vibration and contribute at the same time to the environmental
control of the internal spaces.
Due to the critical exposure to sunlight of the east and west facades, special components such as internal and external light-shelves and internal roller blinds have been introduced to control glare and maximize daylight distribution.
The inner envelope, facing the internal courtyard, has a double skin
composed of a simple curtain wall system, based on the same modularity
as the outer facades, and an external glass louvers layer.
The louvers are composed of reflective glass panes, tilted at
different angles in order to control direct solar radiation and light
penetration into the office spaces. Photovoltaic panels that produce
energy are integrated into the design as shading elements for the
terraces.
