This 22-story tower in Dubai is not just a beautiful building boasting an unconventional design. It is also a very sustainable building, thanks to its innovative lace-like facade. The perforated concrete façade acts as a solar screen, while also allowing plenty of natural light to illuminate the office areas inside. Another role it has is that of a structural exoskeleton that absorbs the tower’s lateral forces and which also creates very efficient column-free interiors.
What’s even more important, is the fact that this unique façade contributes to achieving a lower energy consumption (a 30% reduction). This is possible thanks to the chimney-effect that is created by the 1-meter gap between the façade and the building’s glass surface. Here hot air can easily rise and thus reduce the need of supplementary cooling systems.
The project, envisioned by architects Jesse Reiser and Nanoko Umemoto of RUR Architecture, has generated a lot of interest in he architectural press, and it clearly stands out from the crowd of standard Dubai office towers. Take a better look at the O-14 (pronounced “oh-14”) tower in the pictures below.
