United Overseas Bank Plaza is a complex with twin towerlate-modernist skyscrapers in the city ofSingapore. UOB Plaza One was one of the three tallest in the city, sharing the title with the OUB Centre and Republic Plaza, but it is now the second tallest since the construction of Tanjong Pagar Centre in 2016. UOB Plaza Two is a shorter and older building with construction completed in 1973 and was later renovated in 1995 with a similar facade as UOB Plaza One. Both buildings are connected by a podium supported by four columns. The podium houses the banking hall of the United Overseas Bank's main branch. The building was opened by then Senior MinisterLee Kuan Yew on 6 August 1995 which was 60 years after the founding of the United Overseas Bank.
Overview
The UOB Plaza is a 280.1 m tall 66-floor high-rise, three-story underground building built at Raffles Place, Singapore's Central Business District, along the Singapore River. It is a box-shaped post-modernism building which was designed by Kenzo Tange, a renowned Japanese architect, and was constructed by Nishimatsu Construction and Lum Chang JV. It was completed in 1992. Built as the head office of the United Overseas Bank, one of Singapore's leading banks, the building was also one of the country's tallest skyscrapers along with the adjoining OUB Center and Republic Plaza until it was succeeded by the Tanjong Pagar Centre. There are two buildings that make up the Plaza, which are divided into the high-rise "Plaza 1 " and the low-rise "Plaza ". Among them, "Plaza 2" was built in 1973 before it was remodeled in 1995. The materials, colors, shapes and overall image of the building closely resembles the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, which was completed in Shinjuku, Tokyo in 1990 which was also designed by Kenzo Tange.
UOB Plaza Two
UOB Plaza Two is a building with 38 floors and was completed in 1973 with the building reconstructed again in 1995. The building was formerly called the Bonham Building and housed the former United Chinese Bank before it changed to the current name in 1965.
Architecture
The towers have an octagonal base and consists of rotated cubic volumes, which is a distinctive stylistic expression of Kenzo Tange's works in the 1990s. The cubic volumes on the octagonal base, they rotate on a 45 degree plane of reference and diminish in volume towards the top of UOB Plaza One. A six-storey podium links the two buildings together and skillfully accommodates the reconstructed UOB Building. This place is a large airy atrium linking Raffles Place to Singapore River without entering the building. The banking hall has full height glass walls to see through the Singapore River from the financial district. The change in lighting brings out the geometric qualities of the building's architecture, highlighting the buildings with shafts of light and shadow. The external curtain wall system of the building represents a significant and innovative contribution of the evolution of building facades over time. The "performance wall" envelope of the towers is a composite of white and grey granite and insulated grey glass units. The atrium is also known as a "city room" and above it has a large office space and a large skylight, which gives the place natural lighting. A double storey sky lobby could be found on the 37th and 38th floors, which provide panoramic views of the city. It is also used for workers to transfer lifts from the lower floors to the higher floors. However, the sky lobby has been closed to the public due to security reasons after the September 11, 2001 attacks. There are two sculptures on the ground floor; Homage To Newton by Salvador Dalí in the city room, and another designed by Fernando Botero.
