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Photography: Forward Stroke Inc., Nacasa & Partners Inc.

This is a development project of an area adjacent to the north side of Osaka Station. The complex is composed of the upper levels, including Towers A, B, C (done by NTT-F) and a condominium, in this order from the Station, and the lower levels that are reserved for commercial use and the Knowledge Capital. In comparison to the glass twin towers (Towers A and B) representing the image of advanced office buildings, Tower C incorporates natural materials and heightened hospitality. It also retains a sense of unity while displaying the functional composition as a tower, which is divided into a hotel and a service residence on the upper levels, offices and conference rooms on the middle levels, and communal areas for both the hotel and the offices on the lower levels. Vertical ribs are incorporated in the exterior design not only to achieve sight line control with Owner's Tower and to maintain a comfortable indoor environment with the adequate solar shading they provide, but also to act as a shared element between the middle and upper levels, which are separated by the structural change of columns in order to secure a guestroom frontage suitable for a world class hotel. The warm white office lights match well with the incandescent hotel lights to create a tower silhouette with a sense of uniformity even in the night time. With the natural stone texture as a keynote, the exterior design of the lower levels coordinates with the water and greenery of the north view. The hotel space makes full use of the surrounding landscape as a part of the design. In addition, effective natural ventilation is realized in the office section by utilizing the chimney effect with a large elevation difference, created in the void that penetrates through the hotel section.(Hotel interior design: BILKEY LLINAS DESIGN, Hashimoto Yukio Design Studio Co., Ltd., ILYA Corporation)