Page 133 - AIT1218_E-Paper

Entwurf • Design Mecanoo architecten, NL-Delft
Bauherr • Client Hoogheemraad schap van Delfland
Standort • Location Phoenixstraat 32, NL-Delft
Nutzfläche • Floor space 8.800 m 2
Fotos • Photos Mecanoo architecten, NL-Delft
Mehr Infos auf Seite • More infos on page 162

WATER AUTHORITY

IN DELFT

In Delft, the local architects of the Mecanoo office
newly structured the water-management office.
A
Located in four adjacent buildings, the complex lacked
the inner connection. Clearly defined hubs and links,
perspectives and a subordinate graphic design now
unite everything without destroying the effect of the
clashing architectural styles.
D
B
W ment offices and are among the most important institutions in the
C ith a location of up to 6.75 metres below sea level, water-manage-
Netherlands. In the historic trading town of Delft, the office responsible for
clean and safe open water as well as for the protection against flooding
C bildet den Ursprung. • C is the origin. Alte und neue Verbindung der Gebäudeteile • Old and new connection has been residing since 1645 in a manor house built in 1505. In the course
of the centuries, two neighbouring buildings were additionally purchased
and the extension was completed with a light-coloured brick building in
1975. Mecanoo architecten were commissioned with the extensive refur-
bishment with the goal of designing a modern working environment wit-
hout damaging the existing stock steeped in history in the process. The
objective was to renovate the partly listed sections of the buildings and to
turn the ensemble, which had grown without any control to the size of
8,800 square metres, into a large harmonious whole. Access is now pos-
sible by crossing a courtyard which was transformed from an unattractive
parking- and delivery area into a well-designed welcoming spot with a
lush garden. The architects positioned a glass façade in front of the reces-
sed entrance and thus produced an attractive light-flooded foyer with a
central reception counter. Framed by light-coloured wooden reveals, the
former door- and window openings in the brick façade now clearly mark
the accesses to the spacious interior. In addition to workspaces, also found
here is a restaurant, meeting rooms as well as communication zones and
lounges. New passages and strategic hubs, perspectives and a clear rou-
ting system assist employees and visitors in getting their bearings. As an
element connecting everything, a graphic system developed by the Silo
creative agency was furthermore used in several places. It is generated by
superimposed historic maps of Dutch waterways from the large collection
of the water-management office. This visual connection between the archi-
tectural styles, beginning in the late Gothic period and now reaching right
into the present, creates a subordinate identity within the water-manage-
ment office. In addition, the abstract graphics, applied to glass partition
walls, ensures visual protection of different intensities and is, as a side
Grundriss Erdgeschoss • Ground Floor Plan Grundriss 1. Obergeschoss • Floor Plan Level +1 effect, to promote dialogue between the individual departments.

AIT 12.2018 • 133