Dalian International Conference Center, Dalian, China

(2008-2012)
With the International Conference Center, the Viennese architectural studio Coop
Himmelb(l)au has constructed an unmistakable landmark for the prospering harbor city
of Dalian, China. Opened in 2012 and featuring a shell-shaped roof, the center hosts a
multifunctional small city within a city with conference and event rooms for 7,000
visitors in a total area of 117,650 m.
The two major urban axes converging here give rise to the buildings position and basic
shape. The conference hall for 2,500 visitors and opera house with 1,800 seats is
located in the center of the building beneath the shell-shaped, partially translucent roof.
Small conference rooms with numerous usage options surround this core like pearls,
forming an internal urban structure with squares and streets that invite visitors to linger
and chat the informal meeting spaces that are so important for conferences. Chill-out
zones and catering stations are also located here. The controlled supply of daylight
assists the visitors in their spatial orientation and creates an atmospheric variety on the
inside. Despite its enormous size for 7,000 people, the building is as vibrant as a city,
explains Wolf D. Prix, Design Principal and CEO of Coop Himmelb(l)au. The entry hall
has the size of four football fields and reaches up to 45 meters high. Even with this
size, the building is not forbidding but rather clearly arranged and inviting.

Form and function

It was determined from the outset that the World Economic Forum would be its main
user. This Swiss foundation is mainly known for its annual meetings in Davos and
annually organizes a summer Davos at this new site in China. The requirements for
this function determined the spatial concept, the size and number of conference rooms
and offices. Since the opera and conference center are situated directly behind one
another, the main stage can be used for the classic theater auditorium just as well as
for the flexible multi-purpose hall. The opera house is based on a multifunctional design
and can be used for such events as conferences, music and theater all the way to
classic opera with very little effort.
To make the buildings architectural concept and function visible from the outside, the
conference halls penetrate the facade. They stand out against the metallic outer skin
and deform it. The perforated aluminum slats of the exterior shell provide a sufficient
amount of daylight and give the building its striking sculptural shape. The slats are
opened in some of the public areas, offering selective views of the city and the bay of
Dalian.

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Design
The building consists of two elements, Prix explains, the table and the roof. The
opera, conference halls and access zones rest on the table-shaped steel construction,
with a three-dimensional deformed faade-roof construction above it. Both elements
are steel space frames with depths ranging between five and eight meters. The whole
structure is supported by fourteen vertical cores made of composite steel and concrete.
The steel constructions were produced at Chinese shipyards, since these were the only
facilities where the 10-cm steel plates could be welded safely and precisely. At Coop
Himmelb(l)au, we are thus putting Le Corbusiers words into practice, when he said
that buildings should be constructed like ships, Prix says. Modern technology and
construction expertise allowed for span widths of more than 85 meters and projections
of more than 40 meters.

Sustainable energy concept

One of the most important tasks of sustainable architecture is minimizing the energy
consumption. It is therefore essential to integrate natural environmental resources. The
planners utilized Dalians location on the sea, along with the strong wind. More
precisely, this means:
The relative thermal energy of the sea water and the natural ventilation of the
enormous air volumes in the building are used for the cooling in the summer and
heating in the winter.
Low-temperature systems are used for heating while the thermal mass of the
concrete core is activated to keep the building temperature constant.
The atrium beneath the roof is conceived as a solar-heated, naturally ventilated sub
climatic area.
A high degree of natural daylight reduces the energy consumption for artificial
lighting and has a positive psychological effect.
Integrated into the shape of the building, solar panels provide additional energy.

Location
Dalian is an important seaport as well as an industrial, commercial and tourist center in
Chinas northeastern province of Liaoning. With six million residents, the city was
declared a special economic zone in 1984 and numerous foreign companies
established a base there. A new district and international port for cruise ships is
currently being developed on several fallow properties from former heavy industry
plants and artificially filled-in grounds along Dalians coastline a structural
transformation that will have a great impact on the nationwide significance of the city
within the next decade.

DALIAN INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE CENTER PROJECT TEAM

Client: Dalian Municipal Peoples Government, P.R. China
Planning: COOP HIMMELB(L)AU Wolf D. Prix & Partner ZT GmbH
Design Principal: Wolf D. Prix
Project Partner: Paul Kath (2008-10), Wolfgang Reicht (2010-12)
Design Architect: Alexander Ott
Project Architect: Wolfgang Reicht
Design Team: Quirin Krumbholz, Eva Wolf, Victoria Coaloa
Project Coordination China: Lei Feng
Project Team: Nico Boyer, Jan Brosch, Jessie Chen, Yue Chen, Debora Creel, Simon
Diesendruck, Pola Dietrich, Wendy Fok, Keigo Fukugaki, Francois Gandon, Alice
Gong, Reinhard Hacker, Thomas Hindelang, Veronika Janovska, Moritz Keitel, Matt
Kirkham, Ariane Marx, Gaspar Gonzalez Melero, Matthias Niemeyer, Reinhard Platzl,
Ian Robertson, Peter Rose, Liisi Salumaa, Anja Sorger, Giacomo Tinari, Vanessa
Castro Vlez, Markus Wings, Hui-Cheng, Manfred Yuen.
Model Building: Paul Hoszowski, Nam La-Chi, Taylor Clayton, Lukas Allner, Katsyua
Arai, Matthias Bornhofer, Katrin Ertle, Moritz Heimrath, Rashmi Jois, Zhu Juankang,
Andr Nakonz, Phillip Reiner, Arihan Senocak, Sachin Thorat, Marc Werner, Silja
Wiener, Olivia Wimmer, Logan Yuen, Maria Zagallo
3D Visualization: Isochrom.com / k18.at / Daniel Kerbler / silkroad.com
Local Partners: DADRI Dalian Institute of Architecture Design and Research Co. LTD;
UD Studio, Dalian, P.R. China; J&A Interior Design, Shenzhen, P.R. China
Structural Engineering: B+G Ingenieure, Bollinger Grohmann Schneider ZT-GmbH,
Vienna, Austria; DADRI Dalian Institute of Architecture Design and Research Co. LTD,
Dalian, P.R China
Acoustics: Mller-BBM, Planegg, Germany
Stage Design: BSEDI Beijing Special Engineering Design and Research Institute,
Beijing, P.R. China
Lighting Design:ag Licht, Wilfried Kramb, Bonn, Germany
Audio & Video: CRFTG Radio, Film and Television Design & Research Institute,
Beijing, P.R. China
Climatic Design: Prof. Brian Cody, Berlin, Germany
General Contractor: China Construction Eight Engineering Division, Dalian, P.R. China
CHRONOLOGY
Competition: 03/2008
Start of Planning: 07/2008
Start of Construction: 11/2008
Completion: 09/2012
PROJECT DATA
Site Area: 40,000 m
Gross Floor Area Conference Center: 91,250 m, total: 117,650 m
Footprint: 33,000 m
Faade Area: 30,600 m, Roof area: 28,000 m
Building Height/Length/Width: 60 m / 220 m / 200 m
Number of Floors: 8