Snøhetta reveals design for new innovation hub and Bangkok's largest elevated garden

Snøhetta, in collaboration with A49 Architects, have designed their most extensive project in Asia to date for MQDC, one of Thailand's leading property developers. The project is a 250.000 m2 mixed-use building in the upcoming CyberTech district of South Sukhumvit in Bangkok. The Sukhumvit district is one of Bangkok's centers and a central hub for street life. The area is easily accessible through public transport and offers amenities to cater to the needs and lifestyle of Bangkok residents. The Cloud 11 project will re-invent a part of Sukhumvit into a hub for innovation and tech companies in the city and provide the area with a large, green public space and spaces for artists, makers, and tech entrepreneurs. The scale of the project means that it becomes more than just a building, aiming to become a landmark – heralding the future of Thailand's renowned capital.

Accessible public space

Bangkok is known for its buzzing street life and historical and cultural landmarks; however, it also needs green spaces. Bangkok has one of the lowest amounts of public green space per capita in Asia, at under 7sqm per resident, compared to an average of 39sqm per resident across 22 major Asian cities. Responding to local initiatives for sustainability and livability, like Green Bangkok 2030 and Enter Bangkok2050, the project provides a space that will benefit the community, giving the public a 24-hour access to green spaces, cultural institutions, and modern amenities.

"We have had the opportunity to not only create a building, but a new neighborhood in the center of Bangkok. An urban artifact providing a thriving place for culture and creation and green public spaces that will improve the quality of life for people living in the South Sukhumvit area. With an increasing number of people moving into urban areas, it is crucial to develop communities fit to accommodate the needs of the future cities in a sustainable way, both socially and environmentally", says Kjetil Trædal Thorsen, Founding Partner of Snøhetta.

An urban green lung and Thailand's biggest lawn

The project includes elevated gardens with a big central lawn, which will become the largest of its kind in Thailand, and a series of pocket parks, offering a space for diverse activities in the neighborhood. As a resilient hub for the community, Cloud11 acts as an urban lung and provides a calming space available to everyone. It responds to the existing environmental challenges and is designed to cope with ecological challenges that are becoming pressing issues in big cities like Bangkok, such as air pollution and the lack of green space.

The courtyard is the community heart of the project, and Snøhetta has paid particular attention to the design and layout strategy of the planting to enhance the effect of the urban garden without compromising the open space. By emphasizing multiple large openings through the structures, the space opens, and air will naturally flow through the vegetation and help to better the air quality within the open spaces.

The water of an adjacent canal will be treated with a deep shaft cleaning system and showcased as an educational initiative towards the public to promote more sustainable solutions. The Cloud 11 landscape will serve as a nourishing ground for various local species and wildlife. Small areas of soil and vegetation that differ from the surroundings, known as patches, are strategically spread along different locations throughout the site to create a continuous ecological corridor to attract other species and enhance the site's biodiversity.

A new urban life environment

The Cloud 11 project aims to create a new lifestyle environment within the site and its surroundings. Designed to cater to people's daily needs and requirements, there will be several restaurants operating from a centralized kitchen, a gym, a wide selection of retail stores and two hotels. The project also includes a variety of cultural offerings such as a library, educational venues, and creative workspaces fit for the modern, hybrid way of working from home or outside the office. The location also makes the Cloud 11 easy for visitors and commuters to access through public transportation, with the BTS skytrain station just across the street.

"I am confident that Cloud 11 will set a new standard for a project that responds effectively to the needs of innovators, local communities, and future generations to come. Guided by MQDC vision of 'For all well-being,' we also ensure that Cloud 11's design meets the requirements of the future generations by enhancing Southeast Asia's innovation ecosystem and creating more jobs for the nation and raise the quality of life for the local communities. With the mission of 'Empowering Creators', Cloud 11 will integrate state-of the-art technologies in content production with the Thailand's creative talents and cultural assets, says Mr. Onza Janyaprasert, Project Director of Cloud 11.

Interconnected services

Through Cloud 11, Snøhetta and MQDC are also introducing a completely new circulation network across different scales - from village-like alleys to streets, plazas, escalators, and stairs. All the programs are interconnected to construct an efficient, diverse, and logical system beneficial to all its users.

With the intention to preserve the best flexibility and adaptability of the building in the future, the project will have a centralized logistic system. Starting from the automated warehouse and the central kitchen, food, and non-food produce will travel throughout the retail floors on an omnichannel system, with the possibility to reach the office towers and the other public areas of the project. A centralized kitchen solution aims to reduce food waste, enhance a more efficient use of resources and ingredients, and streamline production. Furthermore, a centralized distribution hub will manage deliveries and all loading infrastructure.

Construction has already started, and the project is expected to complete towards the end of 2024.

PROJECT FACTS

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Image by: MIRImage by: MIR

Image by: MIRImage by: MIR

Image by: MIRImage by: MIR