Warehouse WSJ-103 Novartis

In the context of the campus project, the conversion of the WSJ-103 building provided urgently needed office space.

The idle warehouse building dating back to the fifties is a typical industrial structure made of exposed concrete with generous building level heights, massive mushroom supports and straightforward, yet filigree constructions.

The depth of the building and the position of the supports allow the upper floors to be reutilized as an open-space office for about 80 employees. The interior designers Michele De Lucchi, Hannes Wettstein and Jürg Heuberger planned these office levels. Burckhardt+Partner AG and the general planner team will coordinate the design of the house with the interior designers in thematic workshops.

The ground floor also houses the office of the factory doctor, the mail distribution office and the goods receiving section with the necessary ancillary areas.

The development and conversion were designed with minimum cost in mind. For example, existing elevator (lift) wells were reutilized as riser zones for domestic engineering installations in order to avoid costly concrete cutting work.

The outer casing was provided with new windows. The ground floor was glazed down to the ground using a truss construction. The building is insulated on its inside. This allowed the industrial character of the structure to be preserved.