The Rain Vortex

Jewel Changi Airport was conceptualised to be a tourist attraction at the airport itself as well as a lifestyle destination hub for Singapore residents. The concept of the integrated complex was first proposed in 2013 and the design was completed and construction began on a 3.5 hectares (8.6 acres) area that was previously an open-air carpark in December 2014. The Jewel complex with the HSBC Rain Vortex as its centerpiece opened on 17 April 2019.[3]

Safdie Architects contacted WET to design a waterfall that utilizes Singapore's plentiful rainfall. By funneling rain from the roof through a central oculus, WET has sculpted a constantly flowing centerpiece. Water falls over 40 meters down, from the oculus, and is then funneled down thick aquarium glass to Basement 2, where it is recycled back to the roof. This recreation of the precipitation cycle is seamlessly integrated into Jewel, framing natural rainwater as the centerpiece.[4]

The HSBC Rain Vortex is a highlight of the Jewel, a ten-storey building whose exterior is made of glass and metal. The metal parts are both steel and aluminium, while the glass is transparent, allowing natural light to be transmitted into the interior of the building. Apart from the Rain Vortex, Jewel also houses restaurants, shops, and other amenities that are common in most international airports. However, the Rain Vortex is an innovative concept.[5] The design consists of a circular structure that looks like a doughnut, with a large garden located at the centre and water falling from the edge of oculus to the basement within the boundaries of a monolithic acrylic waterfall. The cost of constructing the Rain Vortex, together with the Forest Valley and the mall, was S$1.7 billion.[6]

The HSBC Rain Vortex[7] is 40 metres (130 ft) tall. It spans the height of seven storeys. The roof of the waterfall pumps 500,000 liters (110,000 imp gal; 130,000 U.S. gal) of rainwater, which is the equivalent of 20% of the water inside an Olympic-size swimming pool.[8] Just under the waterfall is a suspended railway track, through which a skytrain track transporting people through Jewel passes above ground. The entire waterfall falls free flow from the roof, but once it reaches the ground level, there is a monolithic acrylic waterwall to prevent it from splashing over in the basement level.[9]

• Changi Airport