No longer competing to be the biggest, today's aquariums are asked to fill a new role. The habitats and equipment needed are vastly different from marine species to species. Furthermore, the initial costs of construction and running costs of management are extensive. Accordingly, aquarium design requires an eclectic knowledge base, ranging from infrastructure to administrative methods. At Daiken Sekkei, we make full use of our body of knowledge while also being engaged with imminent issues of introducing video technology, renovations, regional revitalization, and overseas collaborations. We also keep abreast of global trends and the latest technologies in search of what an aquarium should be.

With so many large aquariums all over the map, aquariums are no longer able to differentiate themselves by size. What is expected of today's aquariums? First, they should be part of a complex. Increasingly, we expect there to be more complex facilities integrated with different functions, not just standalone aquariums. For example, the DMM Kariyushi Aquarium, slated for 2020, will be built into a shopping complex. The key here will be how marine life is displayed in smaller facilities with smaller budgets.

A development to watch is video technology. In recent years, high-quality video exhibits can be produced at low cost, making them easier to integrate into productions of various sizes and scenes. For EPSON Aqua Park Shinagawa, finished in 2015, we developed interactive exhibits combining tanks and touch panels to produce a seasonal feel with video. With DMM Kariyushi Aquarium, our aim will be to provide an experience that tickles all five senses with a concept of “a new entertainment aquarium, combining the latest in visual expression and spatial representation.” Its exhibit spaces will stretch from the terrestrial world to the underwater world, combining tanks with plants and light, marine life with plants and sound, and the waterfront with nearby reefs and video.

Meanwhile, demand is increasing to renovate aquariums built during Japan’s rapid growth period. With many such aquariums being public facilities, many cities see renovations as their opportunity to create a center to revitalize the region, requesting wide-reaching plans for introducing private management tie-ups, driving tourist traffic, or adding environmental protection and educational aspects. One such growth period facility is Ashizuri Aquarium in Kochi Prefecture, to be renovated in 2020. In this case, Kochi sought plans that included both environmental protection measures for the area, which is in a national park, and regional revitalization. They have formed a joint organization, with the prefecture renovating the aquarium itself and the national government building out adjoining facilities. Daiken Sekkei completed a master plan for the project, forecasting visitor numbers, estimating scale, and calculating construction costs, operation and maintenance costs, renovation costs, and more. We assembled a broad-reaching plan, spanning from building design to administrative issues, including a 10-year budget simulation, entrance fees, and enough room in the budget for future renovations.

We have also utilized our 50+ years of know-how in aquarium design in projects overseas. Requests are recently increasing in China, where the aquariums are large and attract many visitors. For example, given our experience working with large aquariums, Daiken Sekkei was approached by the Beijing Aquarium to handle their renovations for 2021, in which they look to grow their more than 3 million annual visitor count to 4 million. With the renovations, we will look to enhance visitor appeal by building a general entertainment complex that combines aquarium and commercial space. The first floor will house an aqua complex comprising eight zones, and the second floor will be a market zone with restaurants and shopping. Instead of the traditional one-way linear flow, visitors will be able to flow in freely from the second floor.