2DEFINE Architecture with local partner Dalian Urban Planning & Design Institute was selected to direct the design of the Yingkou Convention and Exposition Center, a four-story, 750,000-square-foot facility in Yingkou, China, a city of 2.2 million people located in the northwest province of Liaoning on the Bohai Sea.
The $68 million center will be a unique, sea urchin-shaped building created to reflect its natural environment. The facility will be the centerpiece of a new harbor created off of a satellite central business district in the port city. The oblong building will have no front or back so it will face in all directions to allow 360-degree views.
The convention center will be situated on a 14,000,000-square-foot man-made island which will serve as a business destination and feature outdoor promenades and gardens for use by local residents. The half-acre roof-top terrace will overlook the Bohai Sea, and offer an outdoor space adjacent to the ballroom. An elevated four-lane road with pedestrian walkway will connect the island with the mainland. Construction of the island will begin in 2012 and the building is slated for completion in 2014.
"The Yingkou Convention and Exposition Center will be a bold yet inviting facility in a very prominent port location," said Marshall Strabala, founder and lead designer of 2DEFINE Architecture. "This type of building, when done right, becomes the heart of a city, a place for weddings, meetings, business and leisure. The trick is to create a building and environs that can be used 365 days a year, whether there is a major conference being held or not. We are planning two large seafood restaurants with harbor views and outside terraces and a 12,916-square-foot waterfront promenade. Parking for 350 cars and the loading docks will be hidden below grade, and the basement space will act as a buffer for any storm surge."
The 150-foot-high center will boast a 270,000-square-foot contiguous exhibition hall, 55,000-square-feet of meeting rooms, a 200-seat fixed-seat auditorium, a 900-seat banquet hall, and a large glass atrium. The super structure will feature a unique rain screen system on the roof that will reflect natural light during the day, and create a soft glowing form at night with minimal use of artificial light.