HDD MALL, located next to a former coking plant in Beijing Chaoyang District along the East Fifth Ring Road, combines community-oriented commercial spaces with a museum-style art and leisure complex. Spanning 130,000 square meters, this new shopping destination offers a unique “museum-like” commercial experience that surprises consumers both in terms of architectural design and business concepts. It adds a fresh symbol to Beijing’s industrial aesthetic while introducing a new, accessible lifestyle segment for the public. HDD MALL follows a core design philosophy of “Design + Intelligence, Design + Low Carbon, Design + Emerging Business Models,” seamlessly blending the virtual and the real, low-carbon principles, and emerging business trends. The solution creates a signature commercial space that is both tech-forward and innovative. Focusing on real-world experiences, the design strengthens the organic connection between the space’s intelligence and its users. It transforms the building from a space driven solely by functional and structural needs to one that meets the diverse demands of a smart space, offering valuable insights for the evolution of commercial environments.
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Gold 🏆 Winner
Global Future Design Awards 2025
HDD MALL
Sustainable Architecture (Built)
Firm
PAN CHINA GROUP · SEEK DESIGN
Architect/Designer
Zheng Wang
Design Team
Zheng Wang
Location
Beijing, China
Country
China
Photographer/Copyright
©Zheng Wang
Social Media Handles:
Website
N/A
Building on the rich industrial atmosphere of the former coke factory site and addressing the global challenges of climate change, HDD MALL combines cutting-edge low-carbon and smart design, a philosophy of equitable and sustainable development with a grand industrial architecture. It creates a highly personalized and innovative modern space, where light, lines, structures, and sequences intertwine. Such fusion of industrial and classical elements showcases a beauty rooted in order, offering visitors a glimpse into the deep cultural heritage of the place and providing a fresh and inspiring aesthetic experience for every visitor. HDD MALL’s design makes a strong effort to use more sustainable materials, cutting down on carbon emissions from the extraction, processing, and transportation of building materials. A lot of the recycled materials were collected from nearby buildings. By mixing these bricks, metals, cement, and the textures of the existing structures in a thoughtful way, the design brings order to what might seem like rough, unfinished materials, and gives the building a unique and striking beauty.
Modern brick, known for its breathability, serves as a key element in traditional architecture while offering multiple advantages such as being eco-friendly, energy-efficient, low-carbon, durable, and aesthetically pleasing. In the renovation of HDD MALL, modern brick plays a crucial role. The design skillfully uses modern brick technology to recreate the tactile feel of the industrial red bricks from the era of mass production, transporting visitors back to a time of booming productivity. At HDD MALL, not only was the original protective structure rebuilt, but a newly designed red brick curtain wall system was also incorporated to add a modern touch to the building’s facade. Such integration of industrial style with contemporary elements brings new energy to the space, all while harmonizing with the historical essence of the old coke plant. The exterior wall of the sunken entrance and the arch wall in the central hall at the East Plaza use curtain wall brick technology, which is assembled in modular sections, making the installation process much easier. Compared to traditional brick walls, the brick curtain wall is lighter yet stronger, helping reduce the building’s overall weight while still keeping it stable and durable. Moreover, the multi-layered design of the curtain wall gives it great insulation and soundproofing properties, which not only cuts down on the building’s energy use but also creates a quieter, more comfortable space. The solution is in line with the principles of modern green architecture.
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