Federation of Korean Industries Headquarters
Seoul, South Korea

The groundbreaking ceremony for the 245-meter commercial tower and new headquarters of the Federation of Korean Industries took place last week. The 170,000-m2 building comprises 111,000 m2 above grade and below-grade parking and support spaces. A separate three-dimensional free-form glass enclosure at the podium houses a 6,000-m2 conference center and is connected to the tower by a pedestrian bridge. The tower’s structural system consists of a reinforced concrete core with steel outrigger trusses and perimeter steel belt trusses. The exterior wall is furrowed as part of the architectural expression and to provide optimal utilization of building-integrated photovoltaic panels. The exterior skin was a key factor in disrupting the organization of wind vortices for the relatively prismatic tower geometry. Our Building Structure and Building Skin practices worked closely with Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture to detail the glazing system utilizing Gehry Technologies’ Digital Project software. The team employed parametric modeling to develop a rationalized geometry for panelization of the curved exterior. All design documents were generated and delivered with Revit and Tekla. Construction is scheduled for completion in 2013.