Located in the heart of Longgang District’s Universiade New Town, the shenzheninspired xiexin Science and Technology Park project is generally positioned as an influential, set headquarter R & D Housing, Industrial R & D, innovative R & D housing, high-end talent living and entrepreneurship, complete and dynamic international industrial benchmark projects, and for Shenzhen Longgang Dayun District to create an international image of the city. The four phases to be designed are the only superhigh-rise building in the project and the most important landmark building in the project.
Phase IV site area of 9048 square meters, total building area: 94488.97 square meters, the final planning and design indicators to the formal tender documents shall prevail.
Work Content
The four phases to be designed are positioned as the most high-end R & D Building in the project, designed according to the standard of Grade A office building with 5A, which meets the requirements of internationalization, humanization, digitalization, energy conservation and commercialization, and trying to make it a landmark in the region and a calling card for Longgang District. Design content for the plot of land within the Red Line of all the building planning and architectural design.
Registration Requirements
This tender is for the design of planning and construction scheme. The tender is by invitation + Open application. Domestic and foreign design units can apply, do not accept individuals and individual combination of the application. The applicant should have design experience of 150 meters or above Super high-rise building without limitation of design qualification.
WORK RULES
This tender is for the design of planning and construction scheme. The tender is by invitation + Open application. Domestic and foreign design units can apply, do not accept individuals and individual combination of the application.
Schedule (all times shown below are China Standard Time) :
Prizes
The position of the tenderers shall be ranked according to the comprehensive score. First is the winning bidder, the winning bidder won the project design contract (the tentative total contract price of about RMB 3 million yuan – US$463,000 with the notification of winning the bid and the contract agreement shall prevail) , no award and compensation;
COMPENSATION
The position of the tenderers shall be ranked according to the comprehensive score. The second winner received a compensation of 300,000 yuan (US$46,300), the third winner received a compensation of 200,000 yuan (US$30,850), the fourth and fifth winner received a compensation of 50,000 yuan (US$7,700), no other design units awards and compensation.
All expenses incurred in participating in this tender, including design fees, and all taxes incurred shall be borne by the tenderer.
The announcement is published on AIMIR’s website now. If you want to know more following details regarding to this competition, please feel free to contact AIMIR. What’s more, you’re more than welcome to touch base with us if you need architectural visualization.
Photo-composition, as one of the best methods of 3D rendering to showcase the veracity of the original site, is widely used by architects and designers who are after the authentic rendering with 100% accuracy of surrounding context. AIMIR have an article about different ways to deal with surrounding context and their pros and cons in May 2021 here.
With its amazing result and easy-to-operate feature, photo-matching is the fastest way of getting the ideal result. In most of the cases, the original photos are provided by architects and designers. However, do you really know what makes a site photo feasible? What attributes a successful site photo should have? What photo will help make the final rendering, or destroy it?
If you get the successful site photo for your project, 3D artists can make out of it to accelerate the production process. We’ve listed a few things you can do to make the whole process far easier, and here is how.
Make the Mood of the Site Photo Aligned with Your Ideal Rendering
First thing in mind, the mood of the 3D rendering will be the same with the site photo. Although minor changes could be adjusted, they will have a very similar result in the end. This is to say:
Please consider what mood you’d like for your rendering, and take photo under that particular mood. The mood cannot be changed dramatically.
If you’re looking for a twilight rendering, a 12 p.m. daytime site photo won’t help a lot. AIMIR’s 3D artists are able to Photoshop the photo’s mood, but only within a small range. The vital part is the light and shadow, which are fairly difficult to deal with. It takes ages to process the incorrect photo to make the lighting relationship aligned with desired one. A 10 a.m. photo can be produced to a 2 p.m. one, but the light and shadow on the subjects will be quite contradictory and not compatible with the atmosphere at all.
In some cases, if the client is not available of providing better site photos, we will process the photo provided to make it look more compatible. Despite this, an original site photo is always the best wanted.
Use Professional Cameras or Hire Professional Photographers to Guarantee the Definition
Rendering is in the details, so as photos. You cannot expect a high-res rendering when you can only provide a 1.3M photo. We have conclude the basic quality a good site photo needs:
Resolution: equal or over 5,000 pixel both width & length. As for the file format, it doesn’t matter. We accept all formats.
Besides, we highly recommend a professional photo. A professional photo refers to a photo taken by a professional photographer with professional devices. This is because a professional knows how to present the scene in the best way. Composition, weather, color, light, and other factors will be considered at the same time.
In case of a non-professional situation, which we’ve confronted a lot, a decent photo is accepted as long as it has the right resolution. This means, not only professional photos, photos taken by your handset are accepted when they meets basic requirements. Please be cautious, the quality of the photo is the key factor of the quality of final rendering.
A high-res photo is definitely needed when expecting ordinary and spectacular rendering result.
A Well-Composed Photo with the Right Camera Angle is a Must
Camera angle is the very first presentation of your design, this is for sure. AIMIR has an article about how to choose the best camera angle for your project here. Both 3D rendering and photographs hope to achieve is that the beauty and aesthetics will resonate with its viewer. Again, this is why a professional site photo is strongly recommended. Everyone can imagine what it looks like if an amazing building got fit into a slanting, blurry photo.
The camera angle cannot be changed. The final rendering will share the same angle with the site photo.
Under certain circumstances, a site photo can be adjusted by our 3D artists. For example, a slightly slanting photo could be straightened. However, it still depends on the photo itself whether can be adjusted.
Avoid Irrelevant Objects, Such As Too Many People, Cars, Poles…
Photoshop is able to cope with most of the cases when irrelevant objects are being removed. However, there is a situation where Photoshop cannot do. When there are too many irrelevant objects in the photo that you hope to get rid of, but some of them have covered the main part of the building. It will result in a dilemma where a “blank area” will be left on the photo when removed irrelevant objects.
If this happens and no more site photos can be provided, AIMIR’s 3D artists will use Google Earth to try to find a screenshot of the missing part. This is not always working well, because we need to take the angle and definition into consideration. If the blank part is fairly small, and also on a proper position, we may use plants or people to cover it.
These are AIMIR’s advice for selecting a good site photo when using photo composition in your 3D rendering. When you’re considering using photo composition for your project, please bear in mind these advice to save plenty of time and money. You’re also welcome to talk with AIMIR for professional advice at info@aimircg.com
Shajing ancient village and market in Shajing Avenue area has historical and cultural heritage of “development through ocean, salt, oyster and trade”. The settlement history of Shajing originated from the Northern Song Dynasty, and it set up the Guide Salt Field and Salt Department in the Northern Song Dynasty. At the beginning of Qing Dynasty, the salt field declined and was changed into oyster field, forming the prosperous trading market and then gradually developing the shipping economy of Maozhou River and surrounding river channels. Shajing ancient village and market is not only the key geographical symbol of Shenzhen in the ancient Xin’an County and civilization anchor point of Maozhou River watershed, but also the epitome of the cultural spirit of Shenzhen to take the lead.
The historic scenic area of Shajing ancient village and market takes Longjin Stone Pagoda and Salt Department as the historical cornerstone of village establishment. Longjin River was taken as the axis in early days, forming clan village on both east and west sides; Later, after Shajing Market and Xin Market were set up, it gradually extended to form Shajing Avenue, constituting the historic spatial layout of “village connection through river and street, combination of village and market, seven lanes in parallel, and comb-style layout”.
1.2 Development Background and Objective
The design scope of Shajing Avenue area is about 3 square kilometers. The project covers 23ha historic scenic area of Shajing ancient village and market, which is in the first group of historic scenic area of Shenzhen City. To consider both reconstruction and conservation & activation of the historic scenery, the innovative pathway of “key urban renewal unit + historic scenic area activation” is adopted for this project, exploring the sustainable development path of historic scenic area under the context of urban renewal.
The objective of this project is to construct the regional public activity center in the western center of Shenzhen, build the cultural tourism and creativity demonstration zone with most local humanistic quality and international experimental creative culture of Shenzhen, and create a friendly and livable urban area with resilient ecology and slow traffic. It aims at shaping the Shajing brand representing humanism of Shenzhen, making overall plan with forward-looking and international vision, and carrying over the future urban spiritual civilization.
The project takes the opportunity of activation and utilization of the historic scenic area of Shajing ancient village and market, making overall planning and construction of the modern livable urban area of Shajing Avenue area. The design focus of this project is history conservation and activation, organic integration of new and old urban area, and effective traffic solutions.
2. Project Location
As one of the core areas in the western center of Shenzhen, Shajing Avenue area is situated at the east bank of Pearl River estuary, Shajing Sub-district of Bao’an District, Shenzhen City, and circular-bay front line area of Guangdong – Hong Kong – Macao Greater Bay Area. It has 15min drive from Shenzhen World Exhibition & Convention Center, Maritime New City and Waterlands City on the west, and no more than 20km (40min drive) from Shenzhen Bao’an Airport, being the main radiation area and service area of Airport New City. The area is closely next to Shajing Xinqiao Center on the east.
With convenient access to the circular expressway network of Pearl River Delta leading to Guangzhou and Hong Kong, Shajing Avenue area is adjacent to Outer Ring Expressway on the north (The Outer Ring Expressway starts from Guangzhou – Shenzhen Yanjiang Expressway and stops at Yanba Expressway); links with Guangzhou – Shenzhen Yanjiang Expressway (which starts at Huangpu Toll Station of Huangpu District, Guangzhou City and stops at Yueliangwan Overpass of Nanshan District, Shenzhen City) via Outer Ring Expressway on the west; connects with No. 107 State Highway (which starts at Xicheng District of Beijing City and stops at North Area of Hong Kong SAR) via Outer Ring Expressway on the east, and is no more than 8km (20min drive) from the entrance/exit of the surrounding expressways.
Relying on the planned Haoxiang Road and Xinsha Road, form the central artery of northern Bao’an from east to west: ecological hinterland – advanced manufacturing area – urban central area – external convention and exhibition exchange area.
Work Content
Design Scope:
The scope of urban design of Shajing Avenue area (hereinafter called “Shajing Avenue area”) has an area of about 3 square kilometers, reaching Beihuan Road on the north, Xihuan Road on the west, Huanzhen Road and Shiyan Canal on the east, and Chuangxin Road (planned Liaofeng Road) on the south, in which about 1.4km2 is reconstruction area, historic scenic area of Shajing ancient village and market is about 23ha, and the rest is approved and planned projects under construction and retention area of the current situation.
Extent of Work: Detailed Urban Design Scheme
With core objective of forming the internal and external organic integration of the area, complementing the internal and external function of the ancient village and market, and integrated space with coordinated spatial scenery, establish the overall space system of the area, such as planning structure, functional arrangement, traffic organization, open space, underground space, building height control, etc. Carry out fine design of building form and landscape for the important open space and public node in the reconstruction area and historic scenic area, propose the overall conservation and activation utilization strategy and classified building protection renovation conceptual scheme within the historic scenic area, and arrange the plot division, development control indicators of each plot and building layout as per development scale requirement of reconstruction area.
3. Key Design Focus
3.1 History Conservation and Activation
Shajing Avenue area carries over the mission of building a living dictionary of Shenzhen’s local culture, a chronicle of maritime trade, and branding of cultural tourism. Based on the existing historical research results, the urban design will take the coexistence of cultural heritage survival and modern program development of the historic scenic area as its core objective, extend the historical pattern of the historic scenic area of Shajing Ancient Village, and inherit and reinforce the historical cultural value and characteristics to incorporate into the modern urban development, with focus on the following contents:
— Based on the unified market operation mode, encourage to embed such programs as cultural leisure tourism, cultural entrepreneurship, and supporting public facilities, and explore the new mode and new approach for activation of historic scenic area.
— Pay attention to the humanistic value of historical public space and traditional production & living space. Put emphasis on forming the important public vitality space around the cultural relics, historic buildings and historic environment elements within the conservation area.
— Pay attention to the disaster prevention resilience and landscape leisure value of the watery lanes & streets and historic field ponds. Follow the layout of historical natural elements, highlight the water environment and historic value of Longjin River and Yabian River, and optimize the water form and surrounding green land form.
3.2 Organic Integration of New and Old Urban Area
Pay attention to the harmony between the new building style and traditional building style in the historic scenic area, focus on the interaction and extension of programs inside and outside the ancient village and market, and ensure the continuity and integrity of the spatial systems inside and outside the ancient village and market, such as public space, green landscape, slow traffic, etc.
— Focus on studying the control requirement for new buildings in the construction control area. The new buildings adjacent to the historic scenic area of Shajing ancient village and market shall coordinate and echo with the functional and spatial form of the historic scenic area.
— Under the high-intensity development, study on how to form the organic integration of new and old urban style through the spatial arrangement and design of building layout, building height and building form.
3.3 Effective Traffic Solutions
Fully understand the dual pressure of historic scenic area: cultural tourism traffic distribution and traffic demand in high-intensity new urban area, and provide effective traffic solutions.
— Advocate priority on public transport and slow traffic.
— Fully respect the street layout of the historic scenic area. On the basis of meeting the safety and emergency demand, allow to broaden the road inside the scenic area with caution.
— Emphasize the respect and appropriate concession of road planning towards history conservation. Based on the requirement of setting up two-way six-lane road with some area road boundary width of 29-32.5m for Shajing Avenue, try to minimize the impact of new urban trunk road on the historic scenic area and form the road space with appropriate scale. Mainly optimize the line position of Shajing Avenue, and carry out design on road section, building setback, street scale, street landscape, etc.
4. Bird’s Eye View of Shajing Avenue Area
Registration Requirements
(1) Open application is adopted for this consultation, and there is no qualification requirement. The applicant must be independent legal entity or institution registered at home and abroad. For overseas agency, it must make joint application together with independent legal entity registered in China.
(2) Consortium is encouraged, with no limit on number of the consortium members. The consortium member cannot make application separately either by itself or by forming other consortium with other design agencies in another name. The consortium members need to sign the Consortium Agreement with legal effect, specifying the leading member, work division of each member, etc. The application by individual or group of individuals is not accepted.
(3) Priority will be given to teams with similar design experience:
a) Rich urban renewal and urban design project experience;
b) Comprehensive research capability on historic area space activation and utilization as well as sustainable operation, e.g. historic cultural block, historic scenic area, etc.
(4) The planning designers participating in this international consultation shall be registered personnel of the design agencies. Chief designers shall be persons who have led several projects of the same type with over 5 years of relevant working experience and must directly participate in the whole consulting design process, attending and reporting in the site survey, review Q & A and result presentation. To ensure that the project planning designers have an accurate understanding of the regional background of China and the related requirements, the project planning designers shall have at least one person fluent in Chinese;
(5) Before 15:00 of July 20, 2021 Beijing Time, the applying design agency or consortium shall submit the complete application materials for this international consultation to the designated place, marking on the envelope “Application Materials for International Consultation on Urban Design of Key Urban Renewal Unit of Shajing Avenue Area”. For the content of application materials, refer to Consulting Rules “4. Composition of prequalification application document”.
WORK RULES
“Open tender” is adopted for this international consultation:
First stage – Prequalification: With overall consideration on the applicant achievements and experience, proposed project team members and experience, company qualification and industry reputation, the Host will set up the prequalification review committee according to the law and select 6 shortlisted agencies (without ranking) and 2 alternative agencies (with ranking) at the prequalification stage to enter the stage of urban design scheme.
Second stage – Urban design scheme: 6 shortlisted agencies will submit urban design scheme. The Host will set up a jury panel according to the rules and regulations to select non-ranking top three winners and recommend to the Host. Based on the full respect on the review opinions of the experts, the Host will discuss to determine the ranking of the top three winners.
Third stage – Consultation result development: Based on the full respect on the review opinions of the experts, the Host will determine the ranking of top three schemes. The design agency or consortium getting the first prize and history activation award will be taken as one of the design agencies for international consultation result development, and collaborate with each special planning team for each specialty regarding the key urban renewal unit of Shajing Avenue area, to jointly form the urban design development result for key urban renewal unit of Shajing Avenue area (The extent of design and work content shall conform to the Guidelines for Reconstruction-oriented Urban Regeneration Unit Plan of Shenzhen (2018 Edition) about the requirement for special study content of urban design).
Prizes
First prize (1) winner will get bonus of US$464,100 (RMB3 million) and development fee of US$154,700 (RMB1 million).
Second prize (2) winners will get bonus of US$232,000 (RMB1.5 million) respectively.
Third prize (3) winners will get bonus of US$154,700 (RMB1 million) respectively.
Besides, one history activation award will be selected, with the winner getting US$123,760 (RMB0.8 million) history activation development fee.
The announcement is published on AIMIR’s website now. If you want to know more following details regarding to this competition, please feel free to contact AIMIR. What’s more, you’re more than welcome to touch base with us if you need architectural visualization.
Tender for Architectural Design of Shenzhen 28th Senior High School is about to start. The project is now open for pre-registration. Design teams from all over the world are welcome to pre-register. The official tender information will be released in the near future.
Project Overview
Shenzhen 28th Senior High School intends to build a full-time high school that integrates with the natural landscape and adapts to the development trend of future education. Considering the flexibility and efficiency of space, campus planning is supposed to follow the practical needs of high school education. It should establish friendly, open and interactive urban relations, promote the integration between campus culture and community environment, and actively explore the possibility of new campus in the post-epidemic era.
The site is located in Xinqiao Street in Bao’an District, Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. The west of the site is a key urban renewal area called Xinqiao East. There is a pond of Lianfa quarry on the east and Huoshan Country Park on the south of the site. The design should fully respect the local context and make the best use of the advantages of the site to create an ecological campus.
The project is a boarding high school with a total scale of 72 classes and 3600 students. The total investment of the project is tentatively estimated at RMB 1040 million. The project is expected to start construction at the end of 2021 and be put into use in September 2023.
The total land area is 70030.81 square meters, including 69563.01 square meters for construction and 467.8 square meters for restricted construction. The total gross floor area is 130000 square meters (subject to the final approval from the Development and Reform Department).
Site Photos
Tender Scope
The tender scope of this project is all-phase design of all engineering construction within the site, including feasibility study report preparation, scheme design and optimization, design development, construction document, on-site construction cooperation, construction application assistance, as-built drawing preparation, project completion acceptance evaluation, etc.
The design of foundation pit supporting, slope treatment, lake filling and supporting of this project will be separately tendered.
Tender Process
The project adopts the method of “open bidding”, which includes 3 stages: pre-qualification, design competition and final evaluation. Honorarium is set for the bidders that are pre-qualified but fail to win the bid.
In the pre-qualification stage, applicant is required to provide company qualification and conceptual design scheme. The tenderee will organize a qualification committee to evaluate the qualifications of company and project leader. The conceptual design schemes that are qualified in the qualification evaluation of the company and project leader will be selected by close-bid format. 7 qualified bidders will be selected to enter design competition stage.
Design Fee
The tender fee is tentatively set at RMB 24.5413 million, including the feasibility study report preparation fee of RMB 798500 and the tentative basic design fee of RMB 23.7428 million.
Honorarium is set as below:
Application Requirements
Applicants must be domestic or overseas entities with legal business registration.
Qualification requirements: Applicants must be class-A qualification/certificate in Chinese architecture design and construction industry (Construction Engineering). Consortium is permitted. One consortium shall include no more than 2 members. Leading member must be class-A qualification/certificate in Chinese architecture design and construction industry (Construction Engineering). The consortium member is not required to have any qualifications, but can only carry out the creative scheme design.
Qualification requirements of project leader: Project leader is required to be Grade One registered architect in China. For consortium, project leader must be staff from the leading member.
The announcement is published on AIMIR’s website now. If you need more following details regarding to this competition, please feel free to contact AIMIR. What’s more, you’re more than welcome to touch base with us if you need architectural visualization.
As we live in the era of digital, the use of 3D visualization has become commonplace and more recognized as an integral part of the architecture. Much has been written in our blogs about its benefits. Briefly speaking, it is the process of visualizing the objects before it turns to reality. It is a great marketing tool that helps communicate the concepts and create stunning portfolios. Since 3D visualization is a more advanced and popular service, many architects and designers choose various ways of purchasing these visuals for their projects. Some of the companies outsource architectural visualization services, others employ in-house 3D architectural artists or even do it by themselves. But which is the better one?
This is not black or white. The answer depends on the company’s needs and requirements. Since the answers are changed from what’s themed then, this article would be analyzing the benefit of outsourcing. Hopefully, you can conclude with the best choice for your own company.
1. Reduce the Expenditures
Though intuitive, money is money. The cost is always the first priority to be considered. A first-class team of 3D architectural professionals must include 3D modelers, and animation and post-production experts. Although keeping 3D visualization services in-house is an attractive option, employment means offering staff wages and paying employment taxes. All of this makes the organization of a 3D visualization department a costly business.
However, outsourcing architectural visualization services is a cheaper alternative with fewer obligations. Working with a professional contractor can reduce the cost for the architecture companies because they only need to pay for the work that they required instead of supporting a team of 3D artists.
2. Accelerate Work Progress
Outsourcing architectural visualization services help reduce the project period to an extent. Many 3D architectural studios hire capable 3D artists who accumulate rich experiences in visualizing architecture and design. They know the ability of each other and have reached a tacit understanding during years of cooperation. When dealing with a large-scale project or emergent tasks, they can divide the workload and streamline the production.
In addition, professional project management is another advantage of CG company. They hire highly trained project managers who organize the workflow and make sure the results meet all of the deadlines. They are in charge of the final quality control of 3D visuals, checking the details, and provide internal feedback. In this way, they safeguard the quality and guarantee on-time delivery. As for the architecture company, it avoids spending too much energy on managing the project, which is convenient and time-saving.
3. A Wider Variety of Services
An outsourcing company that has a large sum of outstanding experts who can not only perfect the workflow of architectural visualization, but also provides a wider variety of 3D services, like 3D animation, 3D panoramas, AR, and VR.
Moreover, a studio specialized in offering architectural visualization services has gathered a group of 3D artists with narrow specialization. In the studios, there are people who excel in interiors and exteriors. Some of them are good at visualizing residential buildings. Some are skilled in commercial and industrial designs. Each performs his own functions, which achieves a better effect compared with an in-house team. So, if you’re looking for high-quality and various formats of 3D rendering service, it’s the wise choice to outsource the project.
4. The Support of Top Software and Hardware
Producing good quality 3D renderings takes time and requires powerful computing resources. Though technically, any computer can be used to render images with the right software, it is time-consuming and just passable if using subpar equipment and software. Without powerful software and hardware, the process of image creation will lead to unnecessary time-wasting. For the architecture companies where 3D visualization is not a core business, there is no need to invest in additional computing equipment and professional software.
If they partnering up with a CG company, all problems with equipment will be readily solved. A professional 3D visualization studio arms with effective software for 3D modeling and rendering. With resourceful software, they could produce superior quality in less time, which benefits the architects, especially when facing some urgent projects.
5. The resource library of Pre-Made 3D Assets
Compared to working alone by using an in-house team, outsourcing 3D services provides a wide range of materials to enhance the visual. Professional CG company has developed a resourceful library, including 3D models, textures, and scenes. Those pre-made assets will be enormously helpful to speed up the complement and lower the costs. Besides, it’s possible to change the color of the furniture or replace the texture with the existing materials. Those materials can change perfectly to fit in the design. Architects can preview and adjust their design styles easily rather than spend a long time drawing support from other existing references.
The above 5 important reasons for outsourcing 3D architectural services. In conclusion, it brings lower expenses, less duration, high quality, and a galaxy of talents. In-house or outsourcing 3D services depends on the current requirements and long-term development of the architecture company. And working with an outsourcing 3D studio is the best choice when looking for high-quality architectural visualization. You can totally focus on the quality of the visuals and leave the creation of 3D visuals to experienced and mature professionals. Do you want to find out which is the best alternative for your company? If you want to know more, warmly welcome you to contact us.
