This stunning canopy structure, considered an architectural achievement in its own right, provides a signature entrance to a large plaza in the Roppongi area of Tokyo. The canopy, which spans escalators linking Gaien Higashi Street with an underground mall, provides protection from the elements and creates a unifying link. The canopy covers an area of 30m x 80m.

The challenging layout of the glazing grid was generated using complex geometry, with the condition that it should be constructed with flat, reasonably sized panels of glass. Buro Happold used SmartForm to analyse these complex surfaces and suggest principal directions for arches or structural reinforcements in order to fit a set of four-sided flat panels to a curved surface.