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International Commerce Centre
環球貿易廣場
General information
Type	Hotel, observation, office, dining, shopping, parking
Location	1 Austin Road West, West Kowloon, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong
Construction started	24 July 2002; 22 years ago (2002-07-24)
Completed	3 May 2010; 14 years ago (2010-05-03)
Opening	2011; 13 years ago (2011)
Management	Kai Shing Management Services Limited
Height
Architectural	484 m (1,588 ft)
Tip	490 m (1,610 ft)
Roof	484 m (1,588 ft)
Top floor	476 m (1,562 ft)
Observatory	393 m (1,289 ft), Sky100
Technical details
Floor count	108
Floor area	274,064 m (2,950,000 sq ft)
Lifts/elevators	84
Design and construction
Architect(s)	Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates (design) Belt Collins & Associates (landscape) Wong & Ouyang (HK) Ltd.
Developer	Sun Hung Kai Properties
Structural engineer	Arup
Main contractor	Sanfield Building Contractors Limited

The International Commerce Centre is a 108-story, 484 m (1,588 ft) supertall skyscraper, on top of Elements, neighboring the high-class residential skyscrapers (The Harbourside, The Arch, The Cullinan) and near Kowloon station in Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong. The ICC's official height is 490 m (1,610 ft), which made by the 6 m (20 ft) tall parapets on the roof. It is the world's 13th tallest by height, 10th tallest by number of floors, also Hong Kong's tallest and the only building with over 100 stories. It was the world's 4th tallest and 3rd in Asia when completed in 2010.

The south side of the ICC faces Victoria Harbor, and directly opposite "Two International Finance Centre", which is the 2nd tallest building in Hong Kong, standing at 415 m (1,362 ft) tall with 88 stories.

Development

MTR Corporation Limited and Sun Hung Kai Properties, Hong Kong's metro operator and largest property developer, were responsible for development of this building. Its current name was officially announced in 2005, instead of Union Square Phase 7.

Construction started on reclaimed land in 2002, and halted on September 13, 2009, due to a lift shaft accident that killed 6 workers. It was completed in phases from 2007 to 2010, and opened in 2011, with The Ritz-Carlton opening in late March and Sky100 in early April.

The tower was designed by the American architectural firm Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates (KPF) in association with Wong & Ouyang, and designed to be 574 m (1,883 ft) with 102 floors. One of the reasons to the current height is airways.

Floor count

The top floor is numbered 118. Due to the number "4", meaning to unlucky in Cantonese, and tetraphobia to buildings, is quite common in Hong Kong. (Two International Finance Centre, Nina Tower and private housing estate, as examples); plus, "missing level" makes the levels "be higher"! (Example: the top floor of The Cullinan is "93", in fact, 68). Except for level 3, 103 and 113, levels with "3" in the last digit were also skipped, and level 5, 6, 7, 26, 28, 29 & 105 missing as well for unknown reason.

They are currently replaced by levels with letter "M" and "R", which stand for "Mechanical" and "Refuge". Although the levels missing, it still shows on the elevator's screen of Sky100 and Skydining 101 while going up and down.

28 floors were skipped: 4, 5, 6, 7, 13, 14, 23, 24, 26, 28, 29, 33, 34, 43, 44, 53, 54, 63, 64, 73, 74, 83, 84, 93, 94, 104, 105, 114

18 floors were added: UG, M1-1, M1-2, M1-3, M1-5, R1, R2, M2-1, M2-2, R3, M3-1, M3-2, R4, M4-1, M4-2, M4-3, M5, M6

Floor directory

It takes 68 seconds to the world's 14th highest observation deck, Sky100, from the lobby on level 2; along with Elements, and the skyway (behind the main entrance of Sky100) to West Kowloon Cultural District (WKCD).

"Skydining" in Asian and Western style, including Inakaya, Odyssée, Perla, The Sky Boss and The Kitin, sits on supertall level 101 at an elevation of 399 m (1,309 ft).

The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong occupies level 3, 8, 9 and the top 17 floors (M4-3 to 118), offering 312 rooms as well as the world's highest bar, fitness center and swimming pool set on the top floor.

The office floors are located on level 10 to 99, including a mechanical floor and refuge level; in which, the sky lobbies set on level 48 and 49, and the fitness center "SPACE" on level 20. Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley and Deutsche Bank have become anchor tenants of ICC's offices since 2008.

The ICC Light and Music Show

The LED light show set a new Guinness World Records for the “largest light and sound show on a single building” using a total of 50,000 m on two facades of the ICC.

The Show is designed by the lighting design supervisor, Hirohito Totsune, who already designed the lighting system of the Tokyo Skytree.

It creates a theme and story line by using lights and music elements, similar to "A Symphony of Lights" in Victoria Harbor.

Transportation (daily)

All-day:

Mass Transit Railway (MTR): Airport Express Tung Chung line at Kowloon station / Tuen Ma line at Austin station / Hong Kong High-speed rail at Hong Kong West Kowloon station

Kowloon Motor Bus (KMB): 8, 11, 36B, 42A, 46, 60X, 63X, 69X, 81, 95, 203E, 215X, 260X, 268X, 269B, 271, 280X, 281A, 296D, 904, 905, 914, 960, 961, 968, 978, W2, W3

City Bus (CTB): 904, 905, 914, 930, 930X, 952, 962X, 969, 970, 970X, 971, 973, A11, A12, A22, E11 (E11A), E23 (E23A)

Public light bus (minibus): 74, 74S, 77M, 78

(Routes in red refers to "jointly operated"!)

Overnight:

City Bus (CTB): N11, N23 (Tsz Wan Shan direction), N930, N952, N962, N969, NA11, NA12

Gallery

• A simplified map of Union Square showing the location of the International Commerce Centre
• Tower in August 2010
• Office lobby in November 2008
• Office lobby void in November 2008
• Access from Elements shopping mall in August 2013
• Residential complex The Cullinan and W Hong Kong hotel are located alongside the ICC. Taken in April 2007.
• Viewed from Victoria Peak, with the Yau Ma Tei Typhoon Shelter visible.

See also

• List of tallest buildings in Hong Kong
• List of tallest buildings in China
• List of tallest buildings

• Hong Kong
• Architecture

References

1. "International Commerce Centre".
2. "International Commerce Centre - the Skyscraper Center".
3. https://skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=12
4. "One & Two ifc | International Finance Centre, Hong Kong".
5. "Six die in HK lift shaft plunge". 13 September 2009.
6. "Hong Kong Tourist Attractions | sky100 Hong Kong Observation Deck".
7. "Icc Space".
8. "ICC Light and Music Show (Hong Kong) - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go".
9. "Hirohito Totsune lights up the ICC". 19 April 2013.
10. "TOKYO SKYTREE® (Japan) | Case Study | lighting | Electric Works | Business | Panasonic Global".

External links

• Official website
• Article about the International Commerce Centre in Building Journal, April 2011.
• Elements shopping mall official website
• Wong & Ouyang (HK) Ltd., "More than half-a-century of architectural design experience in Hong Kong", section "International Commerce Centre and The Cullinan", pp. 31–33, September 2009

• Use dmy dates from July 2013
• 2010 establishments in Hong Kong
• Office buildings completed in 2010
• Commercial buildings completed in 2011
• Kohn Pedersen Fox buildings
• MTR Corporation
• Skyscraper office buildings in Hong Kong
• Sun Hung Kai Properties
• Union Square (Hong Kong)
• West Kowloon