QMS Top Tower causes glare on a street corner

For many days now, people traveling on To Huu - Vu Trong Khanh street have paid special attention to a mixed-use building project of Services - Commerce and high-end Housing.

The reason for the attention is not because of the scale of the project or the investor's loud advertising, but because people traveling on this road often face the scene of "the sun shining brightly".

According to Nguoi Dua Tin 's records at 8:00 a.m. on August 7, 2024, although the sun was not too harsh and the surrounding temperature was only 29 degrees Celsius, the QMS Top Tower To Huu building was shining brightly, shining directly into the vision of passersby.

Sharing with Nguoi Dua Tin , Ms. Le Thi Thanh Hien (25 years old) said that because of her job, she has to travel on To Huu street every day. She often has to quickly pass by this building because at some angles, the sun will reflect directly into her eyes, causing glare and difficulty seeing the road.

Ms. Hien shared that in the morning when the sun is not too strong, the reflection of the building is still moderate, but when the sun is strong, especially at noon, the reflection of this building will be much more "brilliant".

When receiving information that the investor intended to "cover" the entire 45-story building in gold, Ms. Hien was quite surprised and questioned whether this would affect people living and moving around this area.

"It's okay if there's little sunlight in the winter, but when the sun is too strong in the summer, I'm afraid it will cause unsafe conditions for road users. Traffic jams often occur on this route, and if there's also glare and loss of visibility, I'm afraid it will lead to many traffic accidents," said Ms. Hien.

Many images of the brightly shining building were also circulated on social networks, many viewers even joked that "so this is the greenhouse effect" when the sun reflected brightly through each layer of glass of the building.

Gold coating is not wrong but need to calculate the risk

Sharing his opinion with Nguoi Dua Tin on the above issue, Mr. Nguyen Hoang Van Truong - architect said that glass materials used in construction have characteristics such as aesthetics, high safety and ease of construction, suitable for designing open spaces.

In particular, reflective glass is very popular because it reflects light, blocks ultraviolet rays, insulates well while still ensuring transparency when people inside the space look outside.

Therefore, spaces with limited area, especially in urban areas, are very fond of using this type of material.

"Many investors like to use yellow reflective glass because it gives a luxurious and expensive feeling to the building because the color is similar to the color of gold - a precious metal with a high price on the market.

However, the weakness of this material is that it is strongly reflective, reflecting directly at an angle equal to the incident angle of the light, which can obstruct the vision of people around.

For a high-rise project located in the middle of a busy intersection, this can cause many consequences and risks for pedestrians due to limited visibility, which can completely cause traffic accidents or unnecessary collisions," Mr. Truong said.

However, Mr. Truong also informed that in Vietnam, there is currently no separate standard for glass, especially facade glass for large-scale, high-rise buildings.

There are some recommended standards for glass, but they are only related to durability, safety, impact, etc., and do not take into account the coefficient of reflection, heat absorption, and light transmission, so the investor's use of this material is not against the law. However, its long-term durability and impact also need to be taken into account.

The "mirror" of 2 projects in Da Nang still remains

Previously in Da Nang, two famous projects, the Trade Center and Service Office on Nguyen Van Linh Street, invested by a bank, and the Risemount Apartment Da Nang building, Nhu Nguyet Street, Hai Chau District, invested by Pavnc Risemount Company, were also "whistled" by the city's Department of Construction.

The leaders of Da Nang city have signed a decision to impose an administrative fine of 40 million VND/investor on the investors of 2 buildings with reflective yellow glass causing glare and require the investors to temporarily stop construction and within 60 days must complete the procedures to request the Department of Construction to adjust or reissue the construction permit.

If not approved, measures will be taken to force the demolition of the violating construction.

According to the leaders of the Da Nang Department of Construction, these two projects arbitrarily changed the exterior cladding color design of the building. The approved architectural plan was to use blue glass, while in reality the investor used yellow glass with inappropriate reflectivity. This architectural change has caused reactions from the people because it causes glare when participating in traffic.