Zhejiang University “Two Institutes" in Quzhou / Architecture

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Text description provided by the architects. Zhejiang University "Two Institutes" in Quzhou (Zhejiang University Quzhou Research Institute and the Quzhou Branch of the College of Engineering) are in the education town of Quzhou, Zhejiang Province. Architecture studio (in association with China Shanghai Architectural Design & Research Institute Co., Ltd) won the international competition in 2019 and is responsible for the whole design work and overall control of the project. The campus officially opened on 18 June 2022. The studio has explored the proper planning between the waterfront landscape and the urban education complex, creating an ecological campus. The borderless layout aims to create a more vivid interaction between the campus and its surroundings. Eventually, the campus will be the place to work, communicate and live, providing more space to exchange ideas, express emotions and inspire innovation. The process is like planting a tree, giving the temperature, moisture, and fresh air; providing enough energy and space to take root and grow upwards.

The project is divided into the south and north zone by the central plaza, it covers an area of 163 acres, and the total construction area is 159,000 square meters. The south zone is a scientific research laboratories and industrial incubation complex, containing various research laboratories and office spaces. Its spatial layout adopts a tree-shaped structure. Each individual building is connected as a whole by a continuous open corridor with good accessibility. Based on different standards and requirements, laboratories used a modular design that dynamically divide and combines with others to meet different needs and increase the convenience of interdisciplinary cooperation. The studio prospects that this space exploration promotes a longer life cycle for the building.

The north zone focuses on teaching, administration, and living. The administration building is the image of the campus entrance. With a podium beneath, the administration building, and an extension linking the conference center, gymnasium, international exchange center, and dormitory buildings. The entrance of the gymnasium is installed with continuous folding doors, allowing for flexible transitions between indoors and outdoors. The international exchange center uses the terrace treatment to maximize the landscape effect. Dormitories are connected to more public spaces to increase the convenience of the living area. The white ceramic panels hanging from the roof to the north and south facades cover the south zone buildings. The fifth facade fully satisfies the setting and hiding of the roof equipment. Facades of the north zone are mainly using horizontal elements. The north and south facades of the administration building are decorated vertically and horizontally with milky white aluminum panels. The east and west facades installed a double-layer curtain wall system for a better interior, that allows natural lighting and ventilation to save energy and reduce emissions.

The studio hopes to create a peaceful, continuously growing campus, where architecture and nature interdependently coexist. The central plaza is bridging and integrating the landscape and urban interface. The riverfront landscape becomes an urban side view and a part of the campus identity. The courtyard in the south zone is relatively private, emphasizing the transition from ornamental to private so that the different landscape areas interspersed between the buildings are similar in style but distinctive. The central landscape of the north zone follows the design principle with sculptural plazas, ecological lawns, and other public communication spaces.