The Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Surugadai Building (Head Office) and the Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Surugadai Annex are located in the university district of Kanda Surugadai in Chiyoda, Tokyo, an area where samurai residences once lined the streets in Edo period. Since the completion of the head office building in 1984, we have been upholding the principle of “harmony with the surrounding environment” and created a rooftop garden able to accommodate tall trees while also preserving existing trees already growing on the premises. Thanks to these measures, we are externally appreciated as an advanced company in terms of greening.
When the Surugadai Annex was constructed in 2012, we created a new green space by planting indigenous tree species as well as fruitful and syrup-yielding trees based on the concept of providing green space to promote harmony between the local community and local fauna, with a view to honoring the concept and history of the Surugadai Building by proactively addressing the issue of urban biodiversity. In order to create a green area that is open to the community, a direct elevator to the rooftop garden of the Surugadai Building and the ECOM Surugadai environmental communication space were built. The soil of the green space maintains a level of softness that is appropriate for the growth of a range of plants and can also hold rainwater. Moreover, a water detention tank with a storage capacity of 3,500 tons was installed in the building’s underground area for the prevention of flooding caused by heavy rain events. The head office building thus contributes to biodiversity conservation and climate change adaptation.