There are large office buildings and then there is the largest workplace in the world, and while size isn’t everything, it certainly is inspirational when talking about the Surat Diamond Bourse (SDB). As a place of business, SDB is unique and the jewel in the crown of Surat, a city in the western Indian state of Gujarat.

This project exceeds anything that the imagination can conjure with a built-up area of nearly 660,451-square-metres (7.1 million-square-feet)) occupying a 36-acre site. If this defies comprehension the statistics don’t end there.

The project brings together 65,000 diamond buyers, makers and sellers under one roof with 4,717 offices ranging in size from 28-square-metres to 10,683-square metres. Amenities include a 10,000-square-metre Food Zone, a retail plaza and more than 8,000-square-metres of health and wellness, conference areas and banquet facilities. With these numbers, SDB is more than an office building, it is a city within the city.

Morphogenesis is the architect of this visionary project that began in December 2017 and opened in November 2023 and it has created a workplace unlike any other. With the ideas of community, sustainability and connection essential to the successful result of the design, the architects have put people first, even with all the complexities that such a project of this breadth entails.

As background, more than 92 per cent of the world’s diamonds are cut in Surat, with the city hosting the largest community of diamond workers in the world. To mitigate workers travelling to Mumbai for work, a commute of some 250 kilometres, the SDB was conceived as a place to bring community together, uniting all facets of the diamond trade from cutting, polishing and trading under the one roof.

The design of SDB comprises a linear circulation spine that anchors the building, connecting it horizontally and vertically across all levels and the spine flares out at both ends to funnel in the prevailing winds.

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The Diamond Club sits as a monolithic insert on the site’s northwest, extending from the free-flowing walls of the spine and taking advantage of the frontage for maximum visibility. Nine office towers diverge from the central spine, interspersed with shaded courtyards, each 1.5 acres, that can be used year-round. The 15-storey office towers are oriented north-south, screening the harsh western sun and enabling 75 per cent of the workspaces to be filled with diffused natural light throughout the day.

Sustainability is inherent in every project designed by Morphogenesis and SDB is no exception. Among the many initiatives, 100 per cent of the building’s community and circulation spaces, (equivalent to 30 per cent of the built-up area), is naturally ventilated with passive cooling. The form of the spine directs in wind and uses the Venturi effect to keep the circulation spaces naturally ventilated.

Staggered atria interrupt the spine vertically, allowing hot air build-up to escape through the stack effect. The atria also incorporate landscaped elements or green lungs that foster a pleasant internal microclimate without mechanical cooling. The building also features one of the largest installations of radiant cooling, where interior spaces are cooled by an energy-efficient system that uses chilled circulated water on the floors and ceilings.

The north-south orientation of the office blocks, coupled with the limited depth of the floor plates, ensures that more than 75 per cent of internal spaces are daylit, drastically reducing the dependence on artificial lighting. The common areas run on solar power throughout the year.

A combination of thermal mass and porosity in relevant areas results in low external heat gains and therefore lower cooling loads. Hybrid climate systems integrate passive strategies for natural ventilation with energy-efficient mechanical cooling.

The building draws from the highly efficient fishbone system, with users moving from a central circulation spine into each of the nine office blocks in a time-efficient manner. The spine corridor houses vertical circulation cores within a one-minute radius of each other; to manage large volumes of people within trading-time constraints.

The flow of people has been designed to minimise security so that once checked at the perimeter, traders can traverse the building multiple times a day. The structure rests on urban-scale columns that double up as seating areas.

As diamond traders have a history of working in a highly collaborative fashion, the central spine is designed as an active social hub. In addition, the building accommodates designated offices and greenery-filled common areas that double up as informal workstations, drawing from the existing culture of working in open air.

Morphogenesis has realised an astounding project of epic proportion, but at its heart are people. SDB creates a better lifestyle for its workers providing an office that requires less travel, affords more amenity and ensures a cleaner environment for everyone.

This is architecture that is making a difference in people’s lives and doing it with grand style. Since the completion of SDB, the local economy has increased, as has the establishment of new social infrastructure such as hospitals and schools. The Surat Diamond Bourse is a polished diamond itself and it is an architectural gem of singular quality in a local and global world of design.

The Surat Diamond Bourse is an entrant in The Building at the 2024 INDE.Awards and Verasol is the proud partner of The Building category.

Morphogenesis
morphogenesis.org

Photography
Edmund Sumner

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