xing design completes Cloud Engine Energy Center

 

Located in Jingdezhen’s Taoxichuan cultural district, China, the Cloud Engine Energy Center, realized by Xing Design, is a striking utility building that integrates advanced energy infrastructure into a public park. Conceived to provide heating, cooling, water pressure, and electricity to the area, the project further enhances the green space it occupies with its sculptural form and site-sensitive positioning. The design divides the structure into two distinct parts: an underground section that houses the essential equipment and a visible platform that floats above the landscape, creating a shaded area for park visitors.

 

While the industrial machinery is exposed along the street-facing facade, the park side features a softer, more organic design, with curved ‘eyes’ formed from the control center and meeting rooms suspended within the truss structure. The building’s name, Cloud Engine, is further derived from the intended aesthetic of the structure, envisioned as a mechanical cloud floating above the greenery.

xing design's sculptural energy center sits in park in china like a mechanical cloud
all images © 言隅 inspace unless stated otherwise

 

 

the complex sits partially underground while hovering above

 

Originally conceived in 2019, the Taoxichuan site faced significant infrastructure challenges as it grew into a thriving cultural hub and entrepreneurship model zone. The existing infrastructure struggled to support the site’s expanding needs, prompting the decision to centralize essential services within a dedicated energy center. This facility — minimizing the visual impact of scattered units — would house heating and cooling systems, water pressure controls, and electrical supplies, while ensuring energy efficiency and fire safety for the entire complex. The energy center was to be positioned in a vacant lot, which would later be excavated for underground parking and connected to nearby hotels. Upon completion, it would be re-covered with greenery, restored to a green park.

 

Shanghai-based Xing Design approached the building’s form with a goal of minimizing its impact on the park’s open space. The solution was to divide the structure 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 control center were suspended above, forming a wedge shape, providing a canopy that shades visitors and acts as a natural viewing platform for park events.

xing design's sculptural energy center sits in park in china like a mechanical cloud
Cloud Engine Energy Center, located in Jingdezhen’s Taoxichuan cultural district | image © 是然 schranimage

 

 

positioned to enhance the green space in the park

 

As a member of the Taoxichuan architecture cluster, Cloud Engine Energy Center is distinctive yet carefully integrated into its architectural surroundings. To ensure it did not disrupt the adjacent Jingyang Camphor Court by Vector Architects, the design was adjusted to shift the building north and modify its angle, sharpening its form and enhancing the dramatic visual perspective. From other vantage points, such as the lobby of the nearby Guomao Hotel, landscape features were used to obscure the building, ensuring that its presence remained subtle within the broader context of the park.

 

Technologically, the energy center is equipped with advanced systems, including variable-frequency centrifugal chillers, gas hot water boilers, and seven large cooling towers. The building’s grid was designed to accommodate these systems, and precise coordination between architectural, structural, and mechanical elements was essential. Xing Design embraced the technical aesthetics of the equipment, incorporating them into the building’s design rather than concealing them. Chinese and English labels engraved on pipes and access points, such as ‘cold’ on water pipes or ‘repair’ on maintenance areas, lend a functional beauty to the structure’s exterior, making it read like an operational manual.

xing design's sculptural energy center sits in park in china like a mechanical cloud
the upper section creates a platform floating above the landscape, creating a shaded area | © 是然 schranimage

 

 

‘An energy center starts with the equipment, and then comes the building,’ say the architects. The cooling system includes three 2200RT and one 1100RT variable-frequency centrifugal chillers, paired with seven large cooling towers. For heating, there are three 5.6MW gas hot water boilers, plus two 1.4MW gas boilers for daily-use hot water. These technical specs became the foundation for the design, and the building’s grid was tailored to accommodate the equipment and the pipes were carefully routed, ensuring the space met all operational needs. This required precise coordination between the architectural, structural, and mechanical systems, made possible through Xing Design’s collaboration with China IPPR team. Parametric models were built to simulate how adjustments would affect the overall design, and wind tunnel tests were conducted.

 

Although the project was largely completed, the COVID-19 pandemic introduced challenges, particularly during the exterior construction phase. One of the more playful aspects of the design — the wind-driven scales that were to ripple in the breeze beneath the structure — was left unrealized. ‘Unfortunately, the ‘mechanical cloud’ floating above the grass slope remains unfinished, this building is one step away from an installation art piece,’ notes the Xing Design team.

xing design's sculptural energy center sits in park in china like a mechanical cloud
pipes are exposed and integrated as part of the architecture facade | image © 是然 schranimage

jingdezhen taoxichuan cloud engine energy center xing design 10
smart campus console | image © 是然 schranimage

xing design's sculptural energy center sits in park in china like a mechanical cloud
the center becomes the stage of various events and activities in the park | image © 是然 schranimage

xing design's sculptural energy center sits in park in china like a mechanical cloud
the surrounding campus | image © 是然 schranimage

jingdezhen taoxichuan cloud engine energy center xing design 6
image © 是然 schranimage

jingdezhen taoxichuan cloud engine energy center xing design 7
the design was adjusted to shift the building north and modify its angle

jingdezhen taoxichuan cloud engine energy center xing design 8
seven cooling towers are installed in the north elevation along the street

 

 

project info:

 

name: Jingdezhen Taoxichuan Cloud Engine Energy Center

architect: Xing Design
design team: Ren Meizi, Lin Weiqiao, Lei Sheng,Chen Mo, Wu Dao, Shi Yuhang, Zhang Xinyu

 

China IPPR team:

 

project manager: Bie Shu

EPC manager: Wanghui

architecture: Liu Bofeng, Li Huanyu

structure: Zhang Jianxun, Liu Zhimin, Xu Da

HVAC: Du Kexin

heating power: Jia Ze

water supply and sewerage: Zhang Wei

electrical engineering: Shen Wen

auto-control: Ding Yanhong

 

 

designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

 

edited by: ravail khan | designboom