Jingdezhen Taoxichuan Cloud Engine Energy Center

“What could a utility building in a green park look like?” We were asked this intriguing question in the summer of 2019. The inquisitor is the owner of the Jingdezhen Ceramic Art Ave Taoxichuan.
Once the state-owned Cosmos Ceramics Machinery Factory, Taoxichuan, was strained, with insufficient electrical capacity and water pressure for the upper floors. Infrastructure had to catch up to the site’s growing ambition. In addition, the client wanted to minimize the visual impact of scattered utility units.
After a series of technical evaluations and energy-saving optimizations, we decided to build a centralized energy center on a vacant site in the park to manage the energy efficiency and fire safety across the site. The site is planned to be excavated to construct an underground parking lot connected to nearby hotels, which is a good opportunity to improve the overall pipeline network.
Rather than the conventional ways to “dress up” such a equipment box, the design divided the building into two parts: the cooling units, power distribution, boiler room, and fire water tank are buried underground, blending into the landscape as a grassy slope like tearing up a corner of the lawn. Seven massive cooling towers and the control center were suspended above, forming a wedge shape.
By splitting and lifting the volume, it returns the previously occupied area to the park. This large structural "canopy" became a welcome, shaded space for relaxation and a natural viewing platform for whatever fun was happening in the park. Considering the landscape view of Jingyang Camphor Court on the west and Guomao Hotel on the south, we shifted the entire building to the northwest corner and adjusted the plan’s angle precisely. This tweak also sharpened the building’s form, enhancing its dramatic presence within the grassy area.
The north elevation along the street has bold, straight industrial features, exposing the real equipment and pipes like a massive machine. On the contrary, the building on the park-facing side looks softer, lighter, and more organic. The internal space of the truss structure presents two curved "eyes" - the control center and the meeting room. We envisioned hanging wind-driven scales under the suspended structure as a finishing touch. These scales would ripple in the breeze, turning the structure into a mechanical cloud floating above the grass - hence the name "Cloud Engine".
Cloud Engine starts with the equipment and then the building. This required precise coordination between the architectural, structural, and mechanical systems. We tailored the building’s grid to accommodate the equipment and carefully routed the pipes, ensuring the space met all operational needs. In addition, the parametric models are built to conduct wind tunnel tests and simulate how adjustments would affect the overall design.
Just like the installation art in the park, in the design of the Cloud Engine, we aimed to showcase the beauty of the equipment, integrating it with the architecture, presenting a cohesive mechanical aesthetic, and maximizing the open space in the park while meeting the functional needs of the energy center.