How Fubon Sky Tree Became a New Landmark in Taichung

Among Taichung's luxury residential developments, Fubon Sky Tree made an immediate impact with sale prices rivaling the most prestigious properties in the city's Seventh Redevelopment Zone, quickly becoming a new city landmark. Designed by Pritzker Architecture Prize laureate Toyo Ito on a complete 2,755-ping city block, this breathing building features a vibrant glass curtain wall crafted by SKLF.

A leading global glass manufacturer, SKLF provides high-quality, high-performance architectural glass solutions. Our products combine aesthetic excellence with energy efficiency, safety and environmental responsibility, bringing vitality and lasting value to modern architecture.

An Urban Forest, a Breathing Work of Art

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Fubon Sky Tree challenges conventional planning, reducing building coverage to just 17.63% and reserving nearly 2,200 ping for a private forest and lake. Instead of maximizing built area, Fubon Land gave Toyo Ito the freedom to realize his vision, resulting in an architectural work that appears to grow from the earth.

The building rises like a vigorous tree. A 400-ping ecological lake and woodland paths planted with royal poinciana, Taiwan incense cedar and zelkova allow residents to enjoy the tranquillity of a forest walk in the heart of the city. This forward-looking plan respects the environment while bringing an international architectural perspective to Taichung's cityscape.

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“The planning and design of Fubon Sky Tree reveal the vision of a Pritzker Prize laureate… Its considerable sensitivity to the environment not only enhances Taichung's cityscape but also introduces the direction of future architecture.” — Architect Chiu Wen-chieh

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A Challenge in Craftsmanship: SKLF Masters the Aesthetics of Gradually Changing Curtain Wall Geometry

The curtain wall, the project's largest individual construction package, is essential to realizing Toyo Ito's biomimetic design. Entrusted with this responsibility, SKLF brought together its senior craftspeople and engineers to overcome unprecedented construction challenges.

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In an interview, SKLF explained that the curtain wall engineering for Fubon Sky Tree was exceptionally demanding, particularly in the following areas:

• An Original Openwork Wall: Taiwan's first openwork wall built with structural glass extends for 150 metres, creating a transparent, lightweight and distinctive appearance.
• Gradually Varying Curvature: The building's irregular form changes gradually, with each of its 2,766 glass panels having a different curvature. Every panel required precise custom fabrication and installation, pushing craftsmanship to its limits.
• Complex Spider Fittings: Glass panels are divided into upper and lower sections and secured with specially designed I-shaped spider fittings. This method must balance refined aesthetics with the structural safety required to resist wind pressure at height.
• Precision Concave Curves: Constructing the building's concave curved balustrades required dividing a single curve into nearly ten sets of tangent segments and assembling them with exceptional precision.

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Fubon Sky Tree took six years from design to completion. Its realization represents more than a new luxury residence: it brings architectural design and construction craftsmanship together. Drawing on deep technical expertise and extensive experience, SKLF transformed Toyo Ito's complex envisioned curves into reality, adding a remarkable chapter to Taiwan's architectural history.

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Source information:

Article title: How Fubon Sky Tree Became a New Landmark in TaichungSource: The Epoch Times (report by Hsieh Ping-ping, Taichung, Taiwan)Article date: 2017-08-04

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