Designed by I.M Pei, the Bank of China Tower located in Hong Kong, China was completed in 1989. Pei had many other buildings completed in the same year such as the glass pyramid of the Grand Louvre. The Bank of China commissioned Pei to design the Bank in 1982 but the construction did not start until 1985. The building costs were around 668 million (in 1985) and became the most iconic building in the Hong Kong skyline. The construction site was located near busy streets, railway stations, and other towers which caused many problems. Some of the problems included the blocking the view of the HSBC tower and other construction related problems.
Due to diverse weather and conditions, the Bank of China had to be built to withstand typhoons, wind, and other natural weather. The tower uses a steel-framed structure reinforced with concrete. This unique design was resistant to wind, used less building material(steel), and allowed for faster construction.
The tower has a base of 52m on each side and was split into four different quadrants during construction. Pei decided that he wanted his design of the tower to resemble bamboo because when bamboo grows together it becomes more stable and stronger. Pei divided the square plan into 4 different quadrants with each quadrant of the tower reaching different heights creating a tapered look. This unique design used less than half the steel than its neighboring towers.
