OKO (, obsolete Russian word for

eye An eye is a sensory organ that allows an organism to perceive visual information. It detects light and converts it into electro-chemical impulses in neurons (neurones). It is part of an organism's visual system. In higher organisms, the ey ...

, also an abbreviation for Ob'yedinonnyye Kristallom Osnovaniya (, literal meaning Foundations Bound by a Crystal)) is a complex of two

skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Most modern sources define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition, other than being very tall high-rise bui ...

s located on plot 16 in the Moscow International Business Center (MIBC) in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. Occupying a total area of about , the

mixed-use Mixed use is a type of urban development, urban design, urban planning and/or a zoning classification that blends multiple uses, such as residential, commercial, cultural, institutional, or entertainment, into one space, where those functions ...

complex houses

apartment An apartment (American English, Canadian English), flat (British English, Indian English, South African English), tenement (Scots English), or unit (Australian English) is a self-contained housing unit (a type of residential real estate) that ...

office An office is a space where the employees of an organization perform Business administration, administrative Work (human activity), work in order to support and realize the various goals of the organization. The word "office" may also denote a po ...

space, a 5-star hotel, and other commodities. The two skyscrapers, North Tower and South Tower, are among the tallest skyscrapers in Russia, with the latter being the taller of the two. Rising , the 85-story South Tower, also known as the OKO Apartment Tower or 16a IBC Tower 1, was the tallest building in Russia and

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

when constructed, until it was surpassed by

Federation Tower The Federation Tower () is a complex of two skyscrapers built on the 13th lot of the Moscow International Business Center in Moscow, Russia. The two skyscrapers are named Tower East or Vostok (Russian: Восток; literally means "East") and T ...

a few months later. The 49-story North Tower, also known as the OKO Office Tower or 16a IBC Tower 2, is tall and the 11th tallest building in Russia. The complex also has a large car park, rising 12 stories with a height of .

History

Construction of the OKO complex started in 2011. In the summer of 2014, the South Tower of the OKO complex surpassed the height of the neighboring Mercury City Tower (also in the MIBC) as the tallest building in Russia and

, only to be surpassed by the neighboring Vostok/East Tower of the

s (also in the MIBC) in November 2014, only a few months later. It was also during this period the OKO was the tallest building made of

reinforced concrete Reinforced concrete, also called ferroconcrete or ferro-concrete, is a composite material in which concrete's relatively low tensile strength and ductility are compensated for by the inclusion of reinforcement having higher tensile strength or ...

. On 28 November 2015, the OKO complex was completed and put into operation. On 27 July 2016, the

Government of Moscow The Government of Moscow (, ) is the highest executive body of state authority of Moscow. The Government of Moscow is headed by the highest official of the city of Moscow, i.e. the Mayor of Moscow. The members of the Government of Moscow are the ...

purchased from the owner of OKO, Capital Group, 55,000 m² of space in one of the towers of the OKO complex at a cost estimated at 14.3 billion rubles. On 16 December 2016, the tallest skating rink in Europe opened on the roof of the South Tower of the OKO complex at a height of . On 30 July 2023, a drone explosion damaged the OKO-2 and IQ-quarter buildings and broke multiple windows, injuring 1.

Design

Overview

The facades of the complex are connected with diagonal folds and are linked by a faceted base, giving a noticeable shard effect that defines the towers' appearance. In addition, the towers' canted folds allow each other to recede from one another as they rise. The complex forms an L-shaped composition at the ground plane that is pulled to perimeter of the site. This placement and the facade folds both allow the building to lean over the nearby Third Ring Road. A landscaped plaza sits at the base of the buildings and creates a sheltered, private garden that guides occupants to separate lobbies, in addition to give public space to pedestrians to rest. The building’s all-glass facade offers several features that benefit its occupants. Ventilated mullions can be opened manually to allow natural air flow into the interior. These mullions also help to mitigate stack effect. These features also allow the complex to give out a dynamic and shifting exterior. In addition, the 28th and 49th floors of the North Tower and the 7th, 27th, 46th, 65th and 83rd floors of the South Tower have entresol, so it can be counted 51 and 90 floors in those buildings accordingly.

Features

The South Tower is used as a

residential building A residential area is a land used in which houses, housing predominates, as opposed to industrial district, industrial and Commercial Area, commercial areas. Housing may vary significantly between, and through, residential areas. These include ...

and a

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...

. The building also has a skating rink on its roof, the tallest in

at a height of . The North Tower is used as an office. The complex also has a

restaurant A restaurant is an establishment that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and Delivery (commerce), food delivery services. Restaurants ...

and a fitness center.

Construction gallery

File:North OKO 12th September 2012.JPG, North Tower on 12 September 2012 File:South OKO 12th 12th September 2012.JPG, South Tower on 12 September 2012 File:OKO Tower, Sep2014.jpg, 2 November 2014 File:OKO Towers 2016.jpg, 22 March 2016

References

External links

* {{Moscow-City Moscow International Business Center Residential skyscrapers in Moscow