India’s Surat Diamond Bourse: $388 Million World’s Biggest Office Complex

Our channel has been telling you about the suspension bridges, railway networks and tunnels from the big and tall buildings of the world, but apart from all other construction projects, in this video we will mention an office which has been declared as the biggest in the world.

This office was not built in a western developed country, but by a developing nation in Asia, which has surpassed the US Defense Department’s 620,000 square meter Pentagon and the 490,000 square meter Chrysler World Headquarters and Technology Center.
This is the Surat Diamond Bourse, built with a floor space of 660,000 square meters in the Indian state of Gujarat, which is also the largest diamond trading hub in the world.

The building was designed by Indian architecture firm Morphogenesis, and its foundation stone was laid on 15 February 2015. The construction work of the complex slowed down due to global outbreak of Covid-19, but the overall structure was completed in May 2022, accelerating the pace of work as soon as the restrictions were lifted.

The edifice has been built on an area of 14.38 hectares in the core of the Diamond Research and Mercantile City or in short DREAM City. Each of its 9 interconnected towers consists of 15 floors, housing 4,700 offices.

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In an era of hybrid work where most of the high-rise buildings around the world are left vacant, there is hardly any room in Surat Diamond Bourse, ranging from 28 square meters to 700 square meters, that has not been left as an office. Fresh air and natural light are also abundantly arranged in every floor of this magnificent complex, which is a testament to its unparalleled engineering.

Now we will also consider some details as to why this mega project was needed in the state of Gujarat despite the already existing Bharat Diamond Bourse comprising of 20 towers on 9.1 hectares in Mumbai.

The historic city of Surat in India’s western state of Gujarat, located about 280 km north of the country’s leading commercial city of Mumbai, is world-renowned for cutting and polishing 90% of the world’s diamonds.

Surat has thousands of small and large workshops spread across the city to process such large quantities of diamonds. After changing from the rough form to the sparkling finished state, most of these diamonds are handed over to merchants who take them to the Bharat Diamond Exchange in Mumbai, where these diamonds are sent around the world.

To consolidate this scattered talent and business, more than 5,000 diamond businesses in the city decided to build the Surat Diamond Bourse. This exemplary engineering project, built at a whooping cost of around $388 million, has provided a rich opportunity for diamond experts and artisans from across the country to work under one roof.

The construction of this gigantic complex, which was developed in a period of 8 years, was completed on 26 July 2023. As soon as Surat Diamond Bourse was formally inaugurated on 17 December 2023, it was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s largest office building.

This mega structure with high security not only consists of offices, but conference halls, retail outlets and 9 courtyard gardens have also been established here. In addition, there are restaurants and cafes on 10,000 square meters, while the parking yard has space for parking 4,500 cars and 10,000 motorcycles. A total of 131 elevators have been installed in this bourse consisting of 9 towers
Natural light is considered to be the best condition for diamond processing and for this purpose the complex has been constructed from north to south to provide direct access to ambient natural light to every part of Surat Diamond Bourse comprising of 4700 offices.

Surat’s humid hot weather and severe monsoon weather often make its residents suffer. In such a situation, special arrangements have also been made to provide a peaceful environment to the 67,000 people working in SDB.

Manit Tyagi, founding partner of the complex’s architect firm Morphogenesis, says that managing the movement of such a large number of people was apparently a very difficult task. He was worried about how the 67,000 people arriving here within 1 hour in the morning would be able to reach their offices on time in this 7 million square feet complex and they all want to leave in a span of an hour in the evening as well.

To tackle this difficulty, the firm set a target that every person should reach their office within 7 minutes after entering the complex through the main gate. For this purpose, multiple traffic simulations were prepared on the computer to make this idea a reality. Ultimately, it was decided to connect all the 9 towers of the complex in a fishbone vertebrate pattern. All 9 towers of Surat Diamond Bourse flank a 400 meters central spine, which provides a speedy route for workers to reach their offices on time.

This spine of the complex also helps it cope with extreme climates. Each end circulates the westerly winds throughout the complex and this process provides 50% of the building’s cooling needs.

Due to its location on the outskirts of the city, the Surat Diamond Bourse was not initially well received by the diamond traders. Most of the businessmen felt that this magnificent building should have been constructed in a relatively better area of the city like Mumbai’s Bharat Diamond Bourse, so that it would be easily accessible for everyone concerned.

With a focus on sustainability, Surat Diamond Bourse has been built on the principles of the 5 Elements of Nature, to minimize its environmental impact. By making full use of the natural light system, the building consumes 50% less energy than other commercial centers. This initiative has made it possible to save 45 kilowatt hours of electricity per square meter annually.

In addition, due to the combination of thermal mass and porosity in the construction of the complex, its external surface has a relatively low heat absorption capacity, which in turn reduces the cooling load in the interior building.

Hybrid climate systems at Surat Diamond Bourse combine passive strategies for natural ventilation with energy-efficient mechanical cooling. The spine-like structure connecting all the towers helps to bring fresh air into the building and easily exhaust hot air outside. Thus a pleasant microclimate, or internal temperature, is maintained in all parts of the complex. The rooftop solar project used to power the complex is the largest floating foundation solar system in India, using approximately 545 tons ready-mix concrete.

SDB is actually the first phase of the DREAM City i.e. Diamond Research and Mercantile City, which will be built on a total area of 7 square kilometers. In this smart city, more offices and residences will also be built for people associated with the diamond industry.

Due to the current global economic situation, further major construction in the DREAM City is currently on hold, as the diamond industry is facing significant losses as a result of various war fronts. Due to the decrease in commercial activities in this sector, during 2023, 20,000 people related to the diamond industry in Surat have lost their jobs.

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Irrespective of the global economic situation, the Surat Diamond Bourse is another milestone in the development of mega projects in India, which has increased the country’s tourist attractions. Tourists coming to India from different countries must come to Surat to see and explore this world-famous complex.

In the construction sector, India is currently working on various mega projects simultaneously, which is a clear example of its vision for development. This fast-emerging global economic powerhouse is all set to surprise the world with its untouchable projects in the coming times.

Is the symbol of development only modern and high-rise buildings with unique engineering, or should other important matters of improvement also be considered a sign of development? Be sure to let us know what you think about it.