A corona of 18-levels high-rise buildings is surrounding the plot along its borders, creating not only a decent city skyline, but also protecting and “safeguarding” the low-rise development inside the borders. The high-rises are facing the sea in the south.
In the inner part of the plot an extensive park with water feature will be created, including a small number of townhouses.
In the north-eastern corner a twin tower of about 100 meters fulfils the function of an eye-catcher and landmark building, combined with attractive commercial uses in its podium level.
1-3 levels commercial buildings and public facilities are encompassing the land on three sides, where such uses are obvious and suitable according to the surrounding urban functions. These pedestal buildings are separating private and public space in a clear and unmistakable way and create a border for the more intimate residential uses inside.
3/4 of the apartments are below 90m², and even the bigger ones have reasonable sizes. In almost 95% of the apartments only two flats share one traffic core – except for a very small percentage of 40 m² one-bedroom apartments.
Point-type buildings that avoid an unpleasant “wall-effect” are the characteristic building type. Moreover, the vast majority of the land is dominated by buildings within or below 11 levels, which have a high popularity and still provide a widely accepted human scale.
In this project urban planning, architecture and floor plan layouts form a unity, altogether with the aim of a reasonable and economic planning with an outstanding quality and liveability. Such an approach is certainly not the norm for low- to medium-income residences in China. The planning demonstrates that high density, high quality and affordability are not mutually exclusive.
The new canteen and the auditorium centre, the so-called ‘Bill’-House, are grouped around the central ‘Seminary Square’. The seminary building for surveying technology lies directly on Bauhaus street, to the west of the new canteen. It is the spine of the campus, joining alongside all main services between seminary square and Bauhaus.
A reduced language of form and colour gives an autonomous character to the campus ensemble. It is a modernist design, yet without alluding to past architectural or stylistic attributes. On the contrary, the new university buildings attempt to mediate between the original solitaire building of the Bauhaus and the surrounding villas.
Essential to all 3 new buildings is the cubic form as well as the accentuated facades. The flush exterior walls underline the cubic appeal of the buildings. The curtain wall made of green exposed aggregated concrete is arranged in an exciting interplay with adjacent flush glass areas, which offer unexpected views towards the inside and out, as well as a dynamic lighting scenario.
The ‘Dicker House’ in Jahnstrasse is home to the department of architecture and structural engineering. Although it is set apart from the 3 green buildings by its red colour scheme, it still has similar design features.
Furthermore, the concept creates relationships with the site axes in the urban context, as well as with the future Munch Sternsen Museum and the existing Opera House.
When occupants or guests are approaching the house, they find here the most extrovert and communicative part of the building: the open kitchen as one of the central functions of the building program. With its fully glazed side walls, the kitchen forms a frame towards inside and outside: Whereas the garden and the picturesque houses of the neighbourhood are presented in big formatted frames, the observer from outside will get a deliberate image of the archaic functions of cooking and eating.
In the interior, the flat kitchen space merges into a tall living room inside the adjacent cuboid. The ceiling heights of both rooms which are openly interconnected form an obvious contrast: the low ceiling of the kitchen is emphasizing the horizontal, whilst the double height living room is developing into the vertical. From outside, the living space is secluded and hidden to the view, providing a rather contemplative atmosphere with its window openings located far on top: instead of culinary delights, this is the place for music, retreat, privacy, brief: protection.
The living room gives access to all other rooms on the 3 levels of the cuboid: Working and guest rooms with corresponding bathrooms, storage and wellness space in the basement, as well as bedrooms and bathrooms of the family in the second floor.
Here the flexibility of the building becomes evident: Planned for a family of four which finally will be reduced to the parents as only permanent occupants, the relatively small rooms of the upper level can be simply combined to bigger areas by removing the non-supporting partition walls.
Metal in a warm charcoal grey is used for windows and secondary cladding elements, e.g. for hidden air conditioning units.
The project includes a 9-level newly constructed office tower, the façade of which follows the same design principles as the refurbished buildings, making it an inseparable part of the whole development.
The multi-functional building offers a variety of sports facilities: an indoor swimming-pool and gymnasium stacked on separate floors, fitness and aerobic rooms, as well as open air tennis courts on the rooftop.
Beside these concentrated sports facilities, the programme includes a foyer for meetings and exhibitions, a lounge with café, administration offices, as well as numerous technical facilities.
The facade is constructed from dark red, satin-finished and partially perforated Trespa panels distributed in a uniform way across all functional areas and allowing for direct or filtered views towards the outside.
A mix of human scale and green technology forms the corporate image and the chance to give the company a thriving, prosperous impetus. The headquarter tow¬er emerges vertically as image and landmark of the whole plot. It resembles a jet turbine: generated by a radial plan, narrower at the base, widening on the floors above before tapering to its top, giving a distinctive outline on the masterplan.
The building is curved vertically and horizontally. Without sharp edges it is hard to catch the real scale of the building, giving it a sense of lightness compared with the surrounding high-rises. The tower appears more slender than a rectangular block of equivalent size. Moreover, the aerodynamic form – like wings of an airplane – is minimizing wind loads on the structure and cladding. The shape allows much of the area to be landscaped, providing a valuable outdoor area in the heart of the masterplan. The base of the building is a circle, surrounded by a sunken plaza.
The distinctive tower has been designed as a ‘green building’ that resolves walls and roof in a continuous skin. A fully glazed double-façade – highly insulated and with integrated sun-protection – is opening up the building to light and views. Atriums between the radiating fingers of each floor are linked vertically in a spiral. In this way a series of informal spaces – as refreshment points or meeting areas equipped with cascading greenery as winter gardens – are created inside the building.
The tower is naturally ventilated, as fresh and filtered air is drawn up through the double-façade and the spiraling light wells (functioning as the building’s “lungs”), reducing the need for air-conditioning and central heating. Light wells and building shape maximize the amount of natural light throughout.
The exterior cladding is made of glass panels of various transparencies. The office areas are equipped with a double skin with central ventilated cavity containing solar-control blinds.
Last not least, the tower generates a strong night-time image thanks to its ‘vibrating’ façade.
Four buildings line up in alternation with inner courtyards around a fifth building, the central middle wing.
The structure of the five coupled blocks is arranged so to provide a high level of flexibility. Each floor can either be used separately, i.e. by up to five office tenanci
Materials match the European style town houses of the Western part of the development.
White natural stone (later on replaced by red coloured brick) was intended to create an elegant, high-quality, solid and rather classical atmosphere. Advertisement is limited and discreet in style in order to match the intended appearance and quality level.
The building hosts several small shops and a supermarket in the ground floor.
In the 2nd and 3rd floor three restaurants with roof terraces are accommodated, as well as offices for property management and community services.
This part of the building is connected to the goods reception and dispatch in the adjoining warehouse which is the full height of the building.
Steel beams running in a diamond pattern allow the rigid construction of the hall without columns with a 40 meter width of span. A layer of timber beams repeats the geometry of the beams and leads into the visible timber boarding of the roof.
In the entrance area the construction peels out of the building as an open canopy, contrasting with the large areas of brick wall.
