The first phase of the business park has been masterplanned by a Polish firm of architects APA Wojciechowski Architects and consists of 12 low and mid-rise buildings positioned to create an orthogonal grid of streets and buildings around a central plaza where the 25 storey headquarter and expo building is located at the head of the main avenue.
The brief for the building was to an iconic building that would become recognizable by Muscovites, and building that would be elegant, but offer an efficient office floor plate with a dynamic connection to the Expo Centre at ground level and so create a ‘hub’ for the Rostec activities within the business park. Underground retail facilities are to be connected to the ground floor lobbies and expo center, further consolidating it as a hub. A rooftop heli-pad was to be integrated into the design all of which had to fit within a maximum height of 100m above the ground level.
Our concept design focussed on the workplace requirement and the creation of the most efficient and flexible commercial office floor plate possible. This was expressed as a cube, raised to the maximum height limit permitted by the city authorities. This distinctive proposition released space below the building, allowing the Expo and office reception to be integrated into a singular linear form spanning under the cube. Natural daylight floods the entrance and circulation spaces of both Expo and the office tower together with the -1 level retail hub. Linking physically and visually this triple height public realm.
Surmounting the linear plinth is a ‘white birch’ forest inhabited by glazed ‘Izbushki’, offering a unique and flexible commercial space for discreet functions such as boardrooms. The core walls and structure supporting the cube are clad with highly reflective polished stainless steel, de-materialising the sense of support and providing distinct reflections of the white birch trees.