'It fronts the railway station and aircraft fly almost directly across the top of it, so there is an acoustic restraint.' The project's physical constraints included the shape of the site, its location below the flight path and being bounded by the Kowloon-Canton Railway line and the Mass Transit Railway line, which ran underneath.

Another challenge was to fully develop the site, while not upsetting residents in the Yau Yat Chuen low-rise residential area.

'There is a height restriction because it is on the flight path, so you can't go higher, only sideways, making it a rather fat building,' Mr Kwan said.

'So, one of our biggest problems was how to make this fat building look thin.' Various methods were used to break down the facade of the building into finer elements, more suited to its residential environment.

Mr Kwan said his firm had been conscious of the need to avoid 'monumental, gigantic structures'.

Unlike an office building, which is likely to be used for the same kind of activity throughout its life time, the centre was designed with flexibility in mind.

Features contributing to the centre's flexibility include modular air-conditioning, plumbing, water and electrical systems.

The building's tenants have the option of selecting 24-hour air-conditioning.

Other 'intelligent' features include the fact cables have been placed in a network of conduits under the floor slab, known as trunking.

'It is cheaper and more practical than the raised floor structure for computer systems,' Mr Kwan said.

Trunking also reduces separation problems if two tenants want to share space previously occupied by one.

Provision for any special pumping requirements was made on the sixth floor, which is intended as workshops for such companies as semiconductor makers.

Inside the centre, two distinct zones were needed to cater to the differing needs of the smaller start-up incubating companies and the bigger, more advanced tenants.

The two zones are interconnected by a central atrium to allow contact between the two groups.

'They are not isolated entirely, because the clients and visitors of one group are encouraged to see the others. Also, the public will be encouraged to come to exhibitions, so the building is approachable. It is a user-friendly building,' Mr Kwan said.

One of the centre's most striking features is a sky-lit atrium which rises above the ground-floor exhibition area.

Standing in the front entrance, one is reminded of a theatre.

Mr Kwan said: 'It is more inviting, so people will feel encouraged to hold more exhibitions and events such as cocktail parties and seminars.' In dealing with the external noise, the company benefitted from its experience in working on the Hong Kong Productivity Council next door, which also has a skylight.

'The introduction of the atrium actually helps the acoustics. Even rooms facing the atrium will have two sheets of glass before you reach the external air - one through the zone wall, another layer through the skylight,' Mr Kwan said.

The effect is like double glazing with a huge gap in between.

Some prospective tenants had expressed concern that their air-conditioning bills would be inflated by the building's large atrium.

This was a misconception, according to Li Kwok-hing, the project architect at Mr Kwan's firm.

'The mechanical and electrical consultant developed a computer model for the atrium. The cost of running the air-conditioning for the atrium is very low - we cool only the exhibition area on the ground and first floor, letting the hot air rise and venting out,' he said.

The company intends repeating this feature in other projects.

The glazing used in the skylight at the HKITC cuts out between 60 and 70 per cent of infrared rays and energy is saved from natural light.

Glazing elsewhere in the building was kept to a minimum in the interests of saving energy.

Mr Kwan said: 'The windows are relatively small in comparison with other curtain-wall buildings. We used small areas, including some near the entrance, to create a more cheerful space.' Mr Kwan's company has designed many landmark buildings in Hong Kong, including the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and the Academy for Performing Arts.

The centre's locality - Tat Chee Avenue in Kowloon Tong - has become something of a show gallery for Mr Kwan's company.

It designed the Hong Kong Productivity Council building next to the HKITC and the Environmental Technology Centre across the road.

The centre was built using a combined flat slab/column and beam method.

'It was deliberately not a hi-tech construction method. It was quite a simple construction because it needed to be put up quickly. Everything in the construction process went smoothly,' Mr Kwan said.

Foundation work started at the site in late 1992 and was finished last August at a total cost of about $200 million.

The HKITC follows the original winning design '80 to 90 per cent', Mr Kwan said.

His company's role in the technology centre ends with the completion of fitting out.