Umeda Sky Building

The is a two-tower mixed-use skyscraper in Osaka, Japan. Located on the outskirts of the Umeda business district in Kita-ku, Osaka, the Umeda Sky Building consists of two 40-story towers interconnected at their two uppermost stories via glass bridges with escalators and elevators that cross an open atrium space. It is currently the fifteenth-tallest building in the prefecture.

The towers reach a total height of while the overall height of the tower including the spires is . The towers were designed by Hiroshi Hara, They were completed in 1993.

History

The building was conceived in 1988 as the "City of Air" project for a mixed-use skyscraper with four interconnected towers in the Umeda central business district, in close proximity to the Yodo River. The third tower of the complex was initially planned to be constructed within the current site of the Vegetable Garden, while the fourth tower was to be located on the eastern side of the third tower. Eventually, the Japan economic bubble of the 1980s caused widespread damage to the Japanese economy and brought the total number of towers down to two.

During the architectural planning of the complex, Hiroshi Hara created two overall concepts for the towers. The first concept was to create a modern landmark in the city featuring modern architecture, and drew inspiration from the Grande Arche in Paris, France, which features a hypercube-like design. The second concept was to emphasize a vision of a "floating city", which can be reflected from the city's urban landscape and is contrasted with the opaque ceramic atrium at the ground floor. The concept also included open-air amenities and viewing decks over the Umeda district and the entire Osaka skyline.

Construction started with the construction of the twin towers using reinforced concrete, while the construction of the sky deck began afterwards. As the structural works of the towers were completed, the sky deck was raised to the ground using a set of hydraulic elevators to raise the section upwards, the first time this was done in a construction project. The installation of the glass-layered escalators and elevators also followed the same system. The tower was fully completed and began opening its doors to the public on March 25, 1993. It is also located near key transport hubs such as the Ōsaka Station and the Umeda Station, both of which are among the busiest railway stations in the world.

Features

The building primarily highlights the rooftop Kuchu Teien Observatory, also known as the Floating Garden Observatory. The two-floor observatory features Café Sky 40 and the Fence of Vows. The base of the towers contains the Island Garden, and the Vegetable Garden, with walking trails and water features.

Tenants

Sekisui House is the owner and developer of the complex, and the main tenant of the tower, which contains the company's headquarters. Mazda has an office in the Umeda Sky Building Tower East. The German consulate-general is located on the thirty-fifth floor of the Umeda Sky Building Tower East. AstraZeneca had their Japanese and Asia-Pacific headquarters in the East Tower, until they moved to Grand Front Osaka Tower B in 2014. PlatinumGames is also located in the building.

Gallery

File:Umeda Sky Building, Osaka, November 2016 -01.jpg|View looking up

File:Umeda Sky Building, Osaka, November 2016 -02.jpg|The escalator crossing the wide atrium-like space

File:Osaka - Night View.jpg|Night view from Umeda Sky Building

File:Osaka Dusk Skyline.png|Dusk view from Umeda Sky Building

File:JAP Osaka Sky Building.jpg|The view of the three towers within the Shin-Umeda City complex, the Westin Umeda and the Umeda Sky Building

File:Umeda Sky Building (5225807716).jpg|A view of the glass-layered escalator crossings from the Sky Deck

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References

External links

Umeda Sky Building, Sekisui House Umeda Operation Co.
Outline of Shin Umeda City , Sekisui House Umeda Operation Co.
Umeda Sky Building, Takenaka Corporation
Umeda Sky Building, Japan Guide