Soaring 461m into the air, the Landmark 81 Tower topped out in January 2018 to become the tallest building on the banks of the River Saigon. The building comprises commercial, retail and luxury residential apartments with a gross floor area of 241,000m², forming a centrepiece of a new residential development.

A symbol of modern Vietnam

The shape of the building resembles a bundle of bamboo canes, referencing the area’s agricultural past and Vietnam’s much revered home-grown resource. We provided geotechnical, structural and fire safety strategies for the landmark tower, developing practical solutions to realise the vision of the architect.
The 81-storey tower has three basement levels and is built in an area of exceptionally poor soil quality, presenting a number of challenges to the design team. Our design solution adopted a thick raft supported on barrette piles, and this allowed for maximum flexibility for the subsequent development of the design even as the foundation was being constructed, a necessity imposed by the fast-track design and construction programme.

Building to international standards

As the local fire safety codes are not suitable for a building of this height, we were commissioned to design the fire safety strategy and provide expert advice based on the internationally recognised NFPA 5000 Building construction and Safety code.
As a result, we developed the first project in Vietnam where lift assisted evacuation is used as a strategy for evacuation. The benefits of this system included a reduction of risk of injury and total evacuation time, especially important for building occupants with varied mobility conditions.

Partners & collaborators

Atkins