Words The Kanto Team and Foster + Partners
Images Foster + Partners
British megafirm Foster + Partners increases its building footprint in Manila to two with the reveal of their latest skyscraper: BWDC Residential Tower, a 45-story structure housing 43 whole-floor apartments. Situated in Bonifacio Global City, the tower boasts commanding views of the Makati skyline, with the refreshing greens of the Manila Golf & Country Club and 60-hectare Manila Polo Club within proximity of the property.
Luke Fox, Head of Studio, Foster + Partners shares: “We wanted to create a luxury residential tower with unparalleled visual and spatial connections to Manila’s central green spaces. The project also extends an adjacent park, providing the city with a new public amenity. The BWDC Residential Tower has been carefully designed to moderate the high temperatures and humidity of the region, delivering climate-responsive, comfortable spaces for living.”
The tower responds to the country’s tropical climes and tempestuous weather with passive design strategies; making the most of its verdant surrounds, BWDC Residential Tower’s form incorporates wraparound verandas that offer 270-degree views. Wide, angled overhangs, a must for a sun-scorched country such as the Philippines, animate the tower’s façade and orthogonal volume. Deeply-set clerestory windows below allow daylight in and keep the heat out.
A rarity for residential highrises, apartment windows are operable and allow true cross-ventilation to permeate each unit. Foster + Partners went as far as stating that “…for part of the year, thermal comfort can thus be achieved by natural means.” For the times when active cooling methods are required, a “highly-efficient centralized chilled water supply system enables cooling.” Denoting its green ambitions, the BWDC Residential Tower aims to attain Singapore’s Green Mark Platinum certification, the highest possible rating in the system.
At ground level, residents and visitors are blessed with shaded arcades and a two-story retail component, which houses the development’s amenity deck on its green roof. Creature comforts for the tower’s residents include a “…a 25-meter tension edge pool overlooking the park, while other facilities including a club, library, spa, and gym are located within the building footprint.”
In anticipation of his second tower in Manila (the first being The Estate, a 277-meter tall residential tower along Ayala Avenue), Roland Schnizer, Senior Partner of Foster + Partners, shares: “The BWDC Residential Tower will be an exciting new addition to the neighborhood and the city of Manila. We look forward to working with the client on the upcoming stages of the project.” •
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