Osaka high-rise by Ingenhoven Architects

The Sankei Building, Japan’s first high-rise building with a glazed double-facade allowing natural ventilation of the interiors, has opened in early August. Ingenhoven Architects had won an international competition in 2004 with their environmental conscious design for this project.

The 177 metre high-rise building in Osaka’s Nishi Umeda business district replaces a 1950s construction. The layout of the approximately 69,000 square metre complex allows for flexible use. Independently articulated lift core and circulation structures are visible from outside.

A nine storey podium structure, with a multi-functional opera and concert hall for 800 people, restaurants and conference facilities, creates an important new pedestrian connection along a central mall.