Shenzhen Airport East Integrated Transport Hub

A biophilic airport transport interchange inspired by the mangrove tree.

GROSS. MAX. in consortium with Grimshaw Architects worked on several airport landscapes including the Heathrow Expansion and a shortlisted competition for Keflavik Airport Area Strategic Masterplan in Iceland. In China we won with Grimshaw / Team Ten / Mott MacDonald an international competition for Shenzhen Airport East Integrated Transport Hub. Covered by one unifying roof and infiltrated by landscape the new transportation hub connects a new domestic airport terminal, national high speed train station and the local Shenzhen metro. The brief called for an aspirational vision to create an integrated transport hub to act as a new urban gateway and landmark for the Greater Bay Area. It also set out the need to be safe, green, intelligent and humanistic, integrating the latest technologies to set a new benchmark for similar projects around the world. The design takes its inspiration from the Mangrove, a tree that has special significance for the city of Shenzhen and is one of the planet’s most effective carbon absorbers. The trunk and branch forms of mangrove trees are most clearly expressed in the structural form of the transport interchange’s columns and roof. The team developed a strong set of design principles enabling a harmonious and unique development delivering operational, experiential and ecological excellence. The natural form of the tree’s diverse root ecosystem, which thrives where waterways converge, inspired the journey passengers will take, both above and below ground, landside and airside, while biodiversity will be in harmony with the hub’s exciting mix of uses. The transport interchange will be a catalyst for the transformation of the whole east terminal district into a vibrant, people oriented new commercial and cultural district for Shenzhen interwoven with landscape features which showcases Shenzhen’s iconic flora as a biophilic gateway experience. The evocation of biophilic influence through the underlying mangrove form serves to reinforce the connection to interior and exterior nature. The landscape integrates surface water through the sponge city principles, and utilising ‘high-tech’ green technologies to further enhance the sustainability principles.