Press Release
Green Island Urban Power Substation by Xudong Zhu Receives the Bronze A' Design Award in Architecture, Building and Structure Design
The international grand jury of the 2024 - 2025 A' Design Award & Competition recognizes Xudong Zhu for architecture, building and structure design
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 21, 2025 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has confirmed the Bronze A' Design Award in the Architecture, Building and Structure Design category for Green Island Urban Power Substation by Xudong Zhu, designed for T.e.n. The award was conferred within the 2024 - 2025 A' Design Award & Competition and was determined through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who assessed anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
What the Bronze A' Design Award Means
The Bronze A' Design Award is given to outstanding designs that showcase a high degree of creativity and practicality. It recognizes the dedication and skill of designers who produce work that stands out for its thoughtful development and innovative use of materials and technology. These designs are acknowledged for their professional execution and potential to influence industry standards positively. Winning this award highlights the designer's ability to blend form and function effectively, offering solutions that enhance people's lives and wellbeing.
About Green Island Urban Power Substation
The power substation integrates sustainable design and urban functionality to redefine public infrastructure. Its double skin facade features solar panels on the south and east for energy efficiency, while planting troughs on green walls enrich the north and west. The southern facade reduces noise pollution and transforms the area into a linear park, creating opportunities for pedestrian activity and community interaction. This innovative approach highlights how essential infrastructure can contribute to both environmental and social well-being.
About Xudong Zhu
Xudong Zhu, RIBA, Assoc.AIA, is an architect and urban designer with over eight years of experience specializing in integrating architectural design with urban functionality. He holds a Master of Architecture in Urban Design from the Harvard Graduate School of Design and a Master of Science in Architecture from Tongji University and Politecnico di Milano. As the leading designer at T.E.N, Xudong has contributed to projects across master planning, urban revitalization, mixed-use developments, and cultural architecture, with a focus on sustainability and adaptive reuse. His work has been widely exhibited, published, and recognized internationally.
Award Record
With this recognition, Xudong Zhu is a winner of 1 A' Design Award.
About the A' Architecture, Building and Structure Design Award
The A' Architecture Design Award is an international architectural design competition recognizing good architectural designs by best architects worldwide. The competition is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to architectural design studios, building contractors, structural engineering firms and architecture and design consultants from all countries. Entries typically include skyscrapers, museums, residential buildings, commercial complexes, educational institutions and religious structures. Awarded architectural projects are published at https://designers.org/design-category/architecture
About A' Design Award & Competition
A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade organized annually since 2008. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The A' Design Award has a philanthropic mission to advance society through good design by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Entries are peer reviewed and anonymously evaluated by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. The A' Design Prize granted to eligible laureates includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, the upload of a work and the preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. Further information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://designers.org/166588
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/166588
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!166588
- Laureate Profile: https://designers.org/d/362340
Media Contact
Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953
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Fact Sheet
The Work
- Project
- Green Island Urban Power Substation
- Function
- Urban Power Substation
- Category
- Architecture, Building and Structure Design
- Discipline
- Spatial Design
- Industry
- Architecture
- Colors
- Ghost White, Dark Gray, Black, Rosy Brown and Silver
- Images
- 5
- Client
- T.e.n
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Xudong Zhu
- Country
- United States of America
- Recognition
- Bronze A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2024 - 2025
- Design ID
- #166588
Credits
- Image Credits
- All credit to Xudong Zhu
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- The power substation uses a double-skin facade to create a “breathing, growing, and energy-storing” Green Island, blending infrastructure with vibrant public space. Solar panels on the south and east maximize energy efficiency, while the north and west feature green walls with planting troughs. The southern facade shields traffic noise and transforms the edge into a lively linear park, connecting neighborhoods and fostering community engagement.
- Inspiration
- This project was inspired by a desire to blend essential infrastructure with urban vitality. Motivated by the potential to turn functional structures into assets for the city, I aimed to create a sustainable design that balances energy efficiency with ecological and social benefits. Drawing from research in green architecture, the project transforms a passive boundary into an active public space that fosters harmony between nature and the urban environment.
- Research
- This applied research aimed to transform infrastructure into vibrant public spaces, focusing on sustainability and urban connectivity. Using sunlight analysis, energy modeling, and environmental simulations, we gathered data with parametric tools. Community feedback and expert insights informed the design. Results showed solar panels enhance energy efficiency, while green walls improve air quality and biodiversity. The project highlights how infrastructure can unite ecological, social, and functional goals.
- Challenge
- The hardest part was balancing strict regulations with innovative design. Local laws restricted changes to building footprints, limiting structural flexibility. Socially, the challenge was transforming a utilitarian substation into a community asset. Technologically, optimizing the double-skin facade for energy efficiency while supporting dynamic green walls required advanced simulations. Overcoming these obstacles involved integrating research, creativity, and stakeholder collaboration.
- Realization and Technology
- The design was developed using a research-driven approach, integrating sustainable strategies and advanced modeling techniques. A double-skin facade system was employed, combining solar photovoltaic panels on sun-facing sides for energy efficiency and perforated aluminum panels with planting troughs on shaded facades to foster biodiversity. Parametric design tools optimized the facade's performance, ensuring a balance between functionality, aesthetics, and ecological benefits.
- Operation and Interaction
- This project combines energy efficiency and urban vitality by using solar panels on sunlit sides to generate power and adjustable panels that provide shade and shelter for pedestrians. The green walls grow with the seasons, creating a dynamic and eco-friendly facade. The design transforms the space into a welcoming park, reducing noise, improving air quality, and connecting neighborhoods, making it both functional and inviting for the community.
- Project Duration and Location
- The project designed in September 2024 in Shanghai, China.
- Specifications
- The project is located on a 50,000 mm x 70,000 mm site, with a total building height of 12,000 mm.
- Keywords
- Green Island, Public Space, Urban Infrastructure, Ecological Design, Sustainability, Power Substation, Double-skin Facade
