Above: photograph by Luis Fonseca

Located on the Fornebu peninsula outside the city, the building is a workplace for 2500 employees at Norwegian energy company Statoil, which asked A-Lab to design an iconic structure amongst the scenic landscape of the Oslo fjord.

Above: photograph by Luis Fonseca

"Large office complexes like this are usually made out of one solid volume," the architects told Dezeen. "Our concept was to deconstruct the 'office machine' into five smaller volumes."

Above: photograph by Luis Fonseca

The five 140-metre-long wings are piled up in a criss-crossing formation, with two at the bottom, two in the middle and a final one at the top. The blocks overlap one another at the ends, but the shape still creates cantilevers of up to 30 metres.

Above: photograph by Luis Fonseca

"Deconstruction into smaller volumes optimises the distribution of light conditions and views for each lamella," explain the architects, comparing the structure to that of a leaf. "[It] also makes a more flexible and resilient 'office machine', as each office lamella works as an individual unit that can more easily adapt to changing needs."

Above: photograph by Trond Joelson

A glazed atrium is positioned at the centre of the building and serves as the main entrance to each block. At ground level, this area functions as an indoor plaza for lunches and informal meetings, and is overlooked by balcony corridors on the floors above.

Offices are located in each three-storey wing and feature modular ceiling systems that allow spaces to be easily sub-divided. Most of these spaces are column-free, as the stacked construction creates additional supports.

A-Lab, led by architects Geir Haaversen and Odd Klev, won a competition in 2009 to design the Statoil regional and international offices. The studio had already been working on another project nearby: the IT-Fornebu Portalbuilding business centre at the former Oslo Airport. See more architecture by A-Lab.

We've featured a few structures that appear to be piles of smaller buildings. Others include a stack of four house-shaped apartments, a hotel that looks like a pile of houses and a skyscraper made of around ten separate buildings.

Above: photograph by Trond Joelson

Photography is by Ivan Brodey, apart from where otherwise stated.

Read on for more information from A-Lab:

Statoil regional and international offices
Fornebu, Norway

The new Statoil regional and international offices at Fornebu is result of an open competition won by Norwegian architects a-lab in February 2009, with completion of the building the autumn of 2012.

Above: photograph by Trond Joelson

Statoil is a Norwegian energy producer, the 57th largest company in the world by revenue, with about 30,000 employees in 37 countries. 2500 of these now work in this unique office building, with a spectacular view over adjacent park areas and the fjord of Oslo. The iconic structure seeks to reflect Statoil's role as an innovative and internationally pioneering petroleum company as well as giving a new identity and pulse to the local environment.

Above: photograph by Trond Joelson

The Fornebu area, a previous site for Oslo's main airport, is undergoing a radical transformation into an urban area, with commercial and residential buildings and public recreation areas.

Above: photograph by Trond Joelson

A key challenge of the design was to balance size and architectural expression with its surroundings, whilst at the same time introducing new impulses that enliven the park and commercial area. More specifically: how does one design a 65.000/117.000 m2 commercial building complex to make it blend with the idyllic shoreline of Fornebu?

A large part of the site has been transformed into a publicly accessible park and promenade along the fjord. The new office building stands on the site of the old airport's multi-storey car park. The structure consists of five office lamellas of identical size, stacked on top of each other. The concept minimizes the environmental footprint of the building and gives a generous amount of space to the park.

Each lamella is 3 stories high, 140 meters long and 23 meters wide. The modules are oriented differently to optimize internal daylight conditions and views towards the fjord landscape. Inside, the modules create a communal atrium, with an "urban plaza" connecting many of the social functions on the ground floor. The design is rooted in the democratic principle of bestowing all users of the building with excellent working conditions that include stunning views and good light conditions.

The building design draws on the oil industry's own construction forms and techniques. The steel superstructure enables the different modules to cantilever up to 30 meters. Escape stairs and services are concentrated in four giant concrete cores, which also stabilize the superstructure. The façade consistes of about 1600 prefabricated elements with integrated windows, insulation and solar-shading, a highly energy efficient solution with no visible fixings in the entire facade.

The central atrium is covered by a high-tech, "propeller-shaped" glass roof – the first of its kind in Scandinavia. The geometry can be described as a "soap-bubble", finding the smallest surface area to close the volume between the modules. Considering the extra weight from snow, this construction was one of the most complex challenges of the project.

Above: photograph by Luis Fonseca

A communication tower in the communal atrium is the centre of the building's social life; everyone passes through the atrium to and from work. In this way, spontaneous encounters and exchanges are fostered, which are very desirable for an international knowledge-based company such as Statoil.

Above: site plan - click for larger image

The office building has a high degree of flexibility to ensure that it can easily be adapted to changing future needs. A specially developed ceiling allows workspaces with separate units as small as 3x3 meters, each with access to power, sprinklers, ventilation and lighting. An interior almost free of columns makes it possible to easily adjust the number and size of workstations and meeting rooms according to a project or the tenant's shifting needs.

Above: ground floor plan - click for larger image

The characteristic building is highly cost effective and has a calculated energy use of just 103 kWh/m2/yr. This is achieved through several methods, including using heat from the remote centralised heat source, 85% energy recycling and of course a well-insulated and airtight skin: The triple-glazed façade panels have an u-value of 0.6 and the air tightness of the construction aids reaching the very low energy consumption figures for the buliding.

Above: first floor plan - click for larger image

The construction of the building above ground was completed in less than 20 months, with a total of 2500 people from 30 countries having worked on site. Due to the very short construction period, most of the building, including steel and concrete superstructure, facades and glazed structures, was prefabricated off-site. Northern Europe's biggest mobile crane was used for the assembly of the steel trusses.

Above: third floor plan - click for larger image

Thanks to thorough planning, advanced BIM-modeling and a fruitful solution-oriented dialogue, the team of the architects, client and owner, construction companies and all subcontractors were able to complete the complex design on schedule. The result is a building where the owner, contractor, architects, construction companies and user of the building have all expressed great satisfaction with the project.

Above: sixth floor plan - click for larger image

Although an untraditional office building, the new Statoil offices represent typical Scandinavian values by emphasizing democratic values and social equality. Both placement and orientation reflects optimized adaptation to its surroundings. Inside, the warm oak interior and cool aluminum reflects the soft northern daylight in different ways, and create a much appreciated contrast in the aspect of accessibility and universal design.

Above: basement floor plan - click for larger image

Name: Statoil regional and international offices
Location: Fornebu, Bærum, Norway
Completion: Autumn 2012
Construction: 20 months
Developer: IT Fornebu Property AS
Client: Statoil ASA

Above: office floor plan options - click for larger image

Total area: 117 000 m2 (65,500 m2 total office area + 51,500 m2 underground parking)
Cost: NOK 1.5 billion
Architects: a-lab (Arkitekturlaboratoriet AS)
Interior architects: a-lab (No) and Momentum Arkitekter (NO)
Landscape architects: Østengen og Bergo (NO) -concept, and Rambøll Norge (NO) -detail
Construction: Skanska (above-ground commercial building) / PEAB (foundation and underground structure)
Annual energy consumption, estimated: 103 kWh/m2
Average R-values (insulation): Windows (including frames) 0.8 W/m2K. Façades 0.18 W/m2K , roof 0.15 W/m2K
Energy source: District heating (85 % heat recovery)

Above: section - click for larger image

Materials:
Superstructure: pre-fabricated reinforced concrete and steel elements
Façades: glass and aluminium

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offices by A-Lab appeared first on Dezeen.

As part of a waterfront development for Oslo called Bjørvika Barcode, Norwegian architects A-Lab have designed an office and residential building with a covered garden punched through the middle.

The project is one of three buildings to form the new headquarters of a Norwegian bank, with the other two designed by Dutch architects MVRDV and Norwegian studio Dark Arkitekter.

A-Lab's building will feature eight storeys of offices topped by seven floors of staggered apartments in a pixellated formation.

Construction is due for completion in 2014.

See also: DnB NOR headquarters by MVRDV

The information that follows is from A-Lab:

DnB NOR, B-building
BJØRVIKA BARCODE

In 2003 MVRDV (NL) / a-lab (NO) / Dark architects (NO) , won the competition for Oslo's new waterfront development along Bjørvika with the design of the "BJØRVIKA BARCODE" for Oslo S Utvikling (OSU).

a-lab has built the first building of the master-plan, the Oslo Headquarters of PricewaterhouseCoopers – PWC in 2009.

With construction already underway, the second a-lab project in the Barcode is part of the currently largest single commercial commission in Norway : the headquarters of Norwegian financial institution DnB NOR, a cluster of 3 buildings of the Barcode. with approx. 70.000 m2 above ground. Each building is being besigned by one of the 3 original masterplan winners : MVRDV who is responsible for the design of the A-building, Dark for the C-building & A-lab for the B-building.

DnB NOR Headquarters B-Building | a-lab

The barcode master plan offers very specific constrains and limitations for the building. The envelope in is cut out as a strip 21x105 with a maximum height of 54m2.

A-lab’s part of the DNB project consists of a mix-use building of 15 stories: 8 floors of DnB NOR offices, topped with living units, in a total of 22.000 m2.

The design addresses this program by efficiently compacting flexible office spaces, and optimizing the views and outdoor spaces of housing units, organized around a raised covered garden. The planning of the office levels allows different combinations of layouts, from open landscape to office cells - the possibility of variation of the circulation path (along cores or facades) guarantees efficiency in the different solutions, as well as the best working conditions according to the strict Norwegian regulations for the working environment.

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Contrasting with the enveloped "machine" underneath, the housing units rest on 1.000 m2 of common open areas, a garden/terrace elevated from the street level. With it's panoramic elevator and open bridges, this green foyer acts as a buffer that every resident crosses.

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Opening in both ends to terraces overlooking the Oslo Fjord to the south or the cityscape towards the north and east, the covered garden is the result of an uncompromising real estate strategy of the Barcode Plan: one-sided apartments are not allowed - raising the environmental standards and the living qualities in the new city waterfront.

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The result was equally uncompromised, with one gesture the housing area only facing the long facades was removed, creating the garden and adding two more "inner facades". These give the opportunity to open an extra window to the outside garden and to the views of the Fjord or the city - Oslo being relatively low-rise.

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With a similar gesture, removing a section of the main mass on the two first levels allows for both the planed public passage through all Barcode buildings, as well as the entrance to the housing units - connecting them directly to Oslo Central Station and the city's central arteries.

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The pragmatic/idealistic duality between the nature of the office levels and the housing gives the building its unique character. The facade composition is an interpretation of this duality. Planed for optimal daylight and environmental performance, the openings grid "flexes" in the points of higher effort.

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Theses points/areas reveal not only structural but "conceptual" effort as well, representing the areas where ideas confered activity on the shape of the initial block.

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Taking the body analogy one step further, the materiality of the building can be analyzed in its three layers as skin, muscle and bone. The outer layer is natural white marble, standing for the initial "untouched" shape.

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All the volumes removed from this shape reveal the Norwegian wood, as the muscle.

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The covered garden opening cuts though the middle of the building, exposing its steel structure.

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Ecological design is entirely organic and sustainable only when all the strategies according to the energy, water, materials, indoor comfort and flexibility are regarded collectively as part of an overall strategy in a building lifecycle. In addition to ecological sustainability is also part of social and economic sustainability as part of the strategy in a successful project.

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a-lab wish to promote sustainable building among the population by using green building strategies and ensuring sustainable living practices in wish B-building is an example.

See also:

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Oslo studio A-Lab have completed a business centre and offices at the former Oslo Airport in Norway.

Called IT-Fornebu Portalbuilding, the project will house information technology companies and forms an entrance to the main terminal building.

Four glazed office blocks and four stone-clad towers flank a structure clad in red aluminium composite, hovering over the main entrance.

Photographs are by Luis Fonseca.

Here's some more information from the architects:

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IT-Fornebu Portalbuilding is now completed

The building is located in Fornebu, the former Oslo Airport, Norway. The new Portal building is an extension to the old Airport Terminal building housing the Business and incubation centre for information technology companies; IT-Fornebu. The Fornebu area is experiencing a surge in development, transforming a previously Airport into a new city-wide destination for business. The IT-Fornebu Portal building consists of approximately 28000 m2, was developed by the IT-Fornebu Eiendom and designed by A-lab architects. a-lab was commissioned to develop the building, after winning the competition in 2004.

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History

In 1998 the Old Fornebu airport closed after 60 years of function. A platform of possibilities was left open for new fields of investment. The new Business centre for information technology was created then by the IT Fornebu AS group responsible for administering and developing the IT Fornebu vision. Therefore it was required that the design of Portalbuilding would combine the vision of the new Fornebu Business centre and establish an efficient and flexible cluster of offices in the area.

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Criteria

In the design A-lab prioritised people. The design criteria’s were to reduce volume and waste, provide an effective, efficient and healthy workplace, enhance communications and give a flexible layout. We believe that successful organizations are made of people who are connected and inspired, who learn through collaboration, share ideas and are motivated towards excellence. We imagined a place where people are present and engaged in mind and body.

The building supports the development and transmission of knowledge, skills, values and ideas, as well as the opportunity for companies to express their own identity.

Ground Floor Plan. Click for larger image

Ambition

How to make a speculative office building respond to ultimate typological efficiency? How can a building be flexible in order to adapt to several plan typologies? How can an office plan be adjusted to different organization criteria’s, from the smallest office unit to large corporate companies? How to reconcile both the developer’s economic requirements for a spec office with the architects vision?

Third Floor Plan. Click for larger image

Concept

The main concept was to strip and divide the program into independent architectonic elements, clearly defined by function, in order to gain maximal flexibility and distinct architectural identity. A continuous base resolves the height difference of the terrain between the main street and the existing Terminal building, and forms a multifunctional floor for the Portal building. The project consists of four glazed office blocks, where light, views and acoustics are optimal, four stone clad supply towers and the public Hub covered in “mandarin red” aluminum composite panels, lifted over the main entrance.

South Elevation. Click for larger image

Building

The four office blocks have a rectangular and rational form and are relieved of all the internal cores and vertical structure allowing an efficient and flexible internal organisation, based on a flexible open floor, a tabula rasa plan, where different users can define and design their special necessities, with a variety of possibilities. Each office block has 5 floors with a total area of 3750m2. The structure is put outside the exterior façade. It is shaped as a diagonal steel structure around the block and is attached every 4,8 meters with a steel joint through the façade to the floor beams. All shared functions such as vertical communication, technical services and wet cores are placed in intermediate towers, detached from the working areas. The towers are designed as closed massive monoliths, where the program that does not need daylight or views is located. The free-form orange Hub is an exception and has a clear identity, it acts as a strategic element that glues all the activities, highlights the synergy between the existing terminal Building and the new It-Fornebu Portalbuilding.

East Elevation. Click for larger image

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