European Patent Office

The proposed design is a result of an effort to integrate a prominent landmark in an existing environment. The aim was to create a new landscape accurate for the different distances and levels of understanding: near-far / urban-local

A slim volume 149m high is located on the site occupying the western part and standing in a calm balance.

In order to stiffen the tower, the façade is designed as a part of the main structure. The chosen rhombic grid structure transfers tensile and compressive forces in crossing directions. This means the grid structure can work as a tube, which is able to carry shear forces, normal forces and bending moments of the structural cantilever system. It is collaborating as a main structural element for horizontal forces as well as vertical forces. The space continuity of the rhombic grid structure is an essential condition in view of the absorption of local structural failures due to unforeseen or extraordinary loading.

The facade is designed with a pattern of light-colored serigraphy, based on the fingerprint of the EPO-Logo. Due to their large format the images of the EPO-Logo will be recognizable from a distance and not from the inside of the building. The approach to the building will offer an additional level of visual experience and will underline the uniqueness of the new EPO-building.

The distribution of the programs derives directly from the degree of security and privacy required. The four groups of offices are situated in the high-rise volume. Due to security reasons, the fact of concentrating them in a vertical volume and having a controlled access to the tower is a great advantage. The groundscape hosts the most public uses offering an easy access for the public.

Regarding the offices, the aim has been to make working and all aspects of the user’s life in the high-rise building more palatable. We understand that a redefinition for more satisfyingly habitable working environment is needed: more diversity, greater multiplicity, less regimented, integrating networks of social places in the sky, in order to reach and surpass the enjoyment on ground level.

The end result of these strategies is a totally integrated building design. Form, space, function, materials and construction all enforce and support each other and determine the design. Nothing needs to be added, and nothing can be taken away.