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Office Building Novartis Campus - Basel
Fabrikstrasse 6, Basel
2006
This building by SANAA makes part of the new masterplan for the Novartis pharmaceutical company by Vittorio Magnago Lampugnani.
The building, which is designated as WSJ-157, is one of the first new constructions on behalf of the mentioned masterplan.
Together with the Forum 3 building by Diener & Diener, the building by SANAA is near the entrance to the Novartis Campus.
This location allows interaction with the camus as well as with the surrounding city. The main program of the building are offices,
but it includes also functions in relation to the main gate of the campus. For example, there is a visitor's center, a café and bank services
within this building. One of the main achievements of this design is the remarkable transparency of the whole building. This transparency
results not only from the glass facade, but also from the plan layout. In contrast to the traditional office building, where are located the
support spaces in the centre leaving the periphery for office spaces, in this design both offices and support spaces are placed along the facade,
so that they receive natural light. Additionally there is a large courtyard in the centre of the building, giving even more light to the spaces.
As a result of the thinness of the building it is possible to notice the extraordinary transparency through various layers of glass.
The plan layout with the large courtyard is to be understood as a new interpretation of the open-plan solution of an office building.
It allows the desired easy communication and flexible use, but the space is also gently divided by the structure of the building.
The building, which is designated as WSJ-157, is one of the first new constructions on behalf of the mentioned masterplan.
Together with the Forum 3 building by Diener & Diener, the building by SANAA is near the entrance to the Novartis Campus.
This location allows interaction with the camus as well as with the surrounding city. The main program of the building are offices,
but it includes also functions in relation to the main gate of the campus. For example, there is a visitor's center, a café and bank services
within this building. One of the main achievements of this design is the remarkable transparency of the whole building. This transparency
results not only from the glass facade, but also from the plan layout. In contrast to the traditional office building, where are located the
support spaces in the centre leaving the periphery for office spaces, in this design both offices and support spaces are placed along the facade,
so that they receive natural light. Additionally there is a large courtyard in the centre of the building, giving even more light to the spaces.
As a result of the thinness of the building it is possible to notice the extraordinary transparency through various layers of glass.
The plan layout with the large courtyard is to be understood as a new interpretation of the open-plan solution of an office building.
It allows the desired easy communication and flexible use, but the space is also gently divided by the structure of the building.