About Samoo Architects & Engineers
SAMOO Architects & Engineers is a multidisciplinary firm located in Seoul, South Korea. The firm offers various architectural, engineering, urban, interior, and sustainable design services. With over 8000 projects completed since 1976, the firm has won over 100 prestigious design awards including the Red Dot, IDEA, and iF Design Awards. SAMOO has significant experience designing high-tech industry infrastructure, such as semiconductor and pharmaceutical factories, besides architectural design. The ideas of biophilia are explored further in biophilic design, which integrates natural aspects into both architectural and interior design. This design form creates spaces with a seamless blend of built and unbuilt elements. Introducing natural stimuli into built areas makes spaces more sustainable and can contribute to a better lifespan for its inhabitants.
About The Project
Location: Daejeon, South Korea
Structure Type: Education
Area: 96,346m²
Floors: 4 stories + 2 basement levels
Year: 2016
Architects: Samoo Architects and Engineers in collaboration with Foster + Partners
Unveiled in Daejeon on 18th October 2016, the Hankook Technodome is the research and development center for ‘Hankook Tire.’ Designed in collaboration with Foster+Partners, the structure represents Hankook Tire’s dedication to innovation, high standards, and thorough research. The 96,328 square meter R+D center is an integral component of Hankook Tire’s new corporate culture and brand vision. The new facility intends to recruit the best people in the industry by offering an inspiring work environment with light-filled workspaces, cutting-edge labs, and vibrant social areas to foster a culture of openness and creativity.
The goal was to create a modern, enigmatic structure with a floating silver roof. An analysis of their current facilities gave insight into the testing areas’ needs, which ranged from isolation pits to double-height buildings to house specialized equipment. The structure by Samoo Architects & Engineers features a flexible layout to accommodate future usage changes and a dynamic, integrated plan that encourages visual linkages between various spaces.
The Design Concept
The new research facility employs a design strategy that alters the researchers’ behavior. Samoo Architects & Engineers aimed for a change in lifestyle in the new space, where each room is actively connected to the others and to the outside world (light, view), which will enhance productivity and eventually increase company value, which will increase customer happiness. The design implements the brand’s distinctive qualities, such as the tire’s circular shape, the company’s colors, and a pursuit of technology and a future-focused mindset.
The design is based on a 9X9 grid module and features a sleek, floating silver roof. The structure is designed with a flexible layout that allows for future changes in use and encourages visual connections between various spaces.
“The challenge was to match both client aspirations and the exacting requirements of a state-of-the-art R+D facility, which was only made possible by the close collaboration between the design and construction teams involved. Beyond the simple form, is a flexible, integrated workplace that will hopefully evoke a sense of unity and pride among the staff at Hankook Tire.”
- Huasop Lee, Project Architect
The Floor Plan
The floor plan features an efficient and smart space called Efficiency, a welfare space called Welfare & Loyalty, and a space for interaction and cooperation called New Corporate Culture. These spaces are placed in the form of 8 boxes on either side of the structure.
A top-lit central spine runs along the research spaces from the restaurant and entrance in the south to the staff accommodation to the north.
The full-height area serves as a light well and draws daylight into the structure. Glazed oval meeting pods are vertically suspended in this central space. The huge water area at the front and the overall symmetrical shape combine to create an environmentally friendly design that guarantees facility functionality. A new sense of balance is observed throughout the entire structure by creating an asymmetrical public space that appears to be floating in the water.
The four-story high atrium, which is 180 meters long and has a width range of 9 to 27 meters, unites each function through its space. It is a place that encourages contact between its visitors. All the components were combined into one sizable roof to symbolize the ‘One Company’ corporate value.
On the same axis as the atrium, the dormitory, which has seven stories and is 80 meters high, was built in a circular shape. A total of 500 units are provided by the inner circle unit and the outer circle unit. Vertical louvers provide a sense of privacy for each unit within, while horizontal louvers on the exterior share a design element with the research facility. The enormous courtyard of 50-meter diameter acts as a venue for numerous events.
Sustainability
The Hankook Technodome by Samoo Architects & Engineers incorporates several sustainable design principles to achieve a LEED “Gold” rating. The nearby dormitory building, which houses tourists and personnel, is heated by waste heat from the research and development center. There is also a lake at the southern entrance to the site that is utilized for rainwater harvesting.
“The design of the new R+D center for Hankook Tire responds to the organization’s specific way of working and its commitment to cutting-edge technology and research. It encapsulates a diverse range of spaces from highly controlled laboratory environments to flexible meeting pods that promote collaboration, all contained within a simple, emblematic form.”
- Nigel Dancey, Head of Studio, Foster + Partners:
Citation
- Samoo.com. 2022. HANKOOK TECHNODOME. [online] Available at: <https://www.samoo.com/home/works/view.do?cntntsSn=7776> [Accessed 14 October 2022].
- Architizer. 2022. Hankook Tire R+D Center by Foster + Partners. [online] Available at: <https://architizer.com/projects/hankook-tire-rd-center/> [Accessed 14 October 2022].
- www.fosterandpartners.com, F., 2022. Hankook Technodome | Foster + Partners. [online] Fosterandpartners.com. Available at: <https://www.fosterandpartners.com/projects/hankook-technodome/> [Accessed 14 October 2022].
