SGMW Research and Development Center Master Plan

The City of Liuzhou, located on the banks of the Liu River in north-central Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, is the second largest industrial center in the Guangxi region. In 2011, the city created a regional plan for development of a state-of-the-art automotive city just east of the Liuzhou City Center.

One of the most influential companies within Liuzhou is SGMW, a joint venture between General Motors, SAIC Motor, and Liuzhou Wuling Motors. To support the city’s mission to become a first-class automotive-focused city, SmithGroup worked with SGMW to develop an automotive Research and Development Center corporate master plan that includes an administrative office building, design studios and offices, engineering buildings, research and testing laboratories, and a café, totally over 300,270 sq meters of new construction.

The new corporate campus is the iconic home for SGMW’s automotive research, development, and manufacturing, and plays a critical role in supporting Luizhou’s mission to become a model first-class automotive city.  At the onset of the project, our team worked with the client to develop a set of thematic principles that helped guide the design direction for the master plan.

The SGMW R&D Center is a model for promoting an effective and collaborative culture between automotive researchers, designers, and spare part makers. The planning and design of the new campus reinforces and strengthens the need for information sharing between engineers and technicians.

The master plan builds on the Liuzhou’s natural features by blending mountainous, riverine, and urban forms into a holistic, well-balanced environment where residence and employees can benefit from a low-carbon, sustainable campus. Buildings are shaped by continuous slopes, allowing for roof terraces, outdoor patios, and spill out spaces for employees. The design also incorporates amenities – running track, ping pong tables, tennis courts, and more – to enhance the human­ experience.

The SGMW R&D Center is a hub for vocational education and innovation, traditional automotive manufacturing, development of energy efficient technologies, and the integration of R&D into manufacturing and marketing. The interconnected site design and building adjacencies support a collaborative learning environment for current and future automotive industry employees. 

The SGMW Research and Development campus leads the trend in fostering an automotive culture through exhibition and demonstration of innovation, energy technology, and cutting-edge design. The new campus will serve as a tourism destination where visitors can experience and learn more about current trends in the industry.