Architonic projects of the year 2022: Offices

Despite work from outside the office taking a stronger, long-term grip on the concept of ‘office space’ this year, both new office buildings and redeveloped ones were still able to make their mark on Architonic users. The most popular projects, however, were those with something to say on sustainability. 

From championing and exemplifying environmental and climatic architecture, reusing rather than rebuilding, and those with the strong physical, visual and economic connections to make lasting change in their environments, let’s take a look at the most popular newly completed office projects of the past year, and what they teach us about the changing office landscape.

The United Arab Emirates, although benefitting from the fossil-fuel industry, is one of the world’s leading economies striving for a world without it. BEEAH Group is a company that uses collated knowledge on sustainable practices and technologies to help global clients reach their own environmental goals, and the recently completed HQ is an iconic project that exemplifies their work.

‘BEEAH demonstrates how technology can scale sustainable impact and ultimately serve as a blueprint for tomorrow’s smart, sustainable cities,’ explain project architects Zaha Hadid Architects. ‘Embodying these principles, the headquarters’ design responds to its environment as a series of interconnecting ‘dunes’ oriented and shaped to optimise local climatic conditions. Embedded within its context of Sharjah’s Al Sajaa desert, the design echoes the surrounding landscape shaped by prevailing winds into concave sand dunes and ridges that become convex when they intersect.’

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Morland Mixité Capitale is a multi-purpose building including office, hospitality and community spaces, as well as a range of residential provisions from affordable to upscale housing. Originally utilised for city administration, ‘the complex had a closed-off and unapproachable appearance, which was also evident in the rather lifeless square,’ describe the redevelopment project architect, David Chipperfield Architects, ‘as a consequence of the grand scale and the stringent, repetitive facade grid.’

‘Preserving and further developing the existing building not only ensures urban continuity, but also forms an essential component for the sustainability concept,’ explain the architects on the benefit of the choice to reuse. ‘With great respect for the existing fabric, it was repaired instead of being replaced wherever possible.’

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‘Although dedicated to the earth, it is a building for people based on easy access, visibility and communication’ explains Prof. Dikkie Scipio, co-founder of the Geo and Environmental Centre’s architects, KAAN Architecten. Set on a slope, the building’s four-storey northern edge borders a campus square with its welcoming glazed entrance, while on the southern side, a six-storey facade seems to be wrapped in horizontal rings.

‘Measuring two metres in height and depth, the bands provide sun shading and light control, rendering external sun blinds superfluous,’ explains KAAN Architecten, ‘Long uninterrupted views are made possible because the facade bands are held up by shear walls detached from the continuous mullion-free glass.’

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Physically connected to its environment, meanwhile, the Turbosealtech New Incubator Office Building literally allows innovative companies to get in on the ground floor, with an angled form that seems to tilt into the earth. ‘The form was generated with considerations toward continuity of site views, heat control and the function of the building,’ explain project architects New Wave Architecture. ‘Drawn out of the ground, the volume of the building creates a visually beautiful skyline and harmony with the environment.’

‘The exterior of the building is wrapped in a glass envelope, helping to allow in natural light,’ say the architects, ‘and the aluminium profiles on the outer layer control internal heat gain.’ The diagonal turfed roof, meanwhile helps to reduce building temperature and energy use throughout each level.

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Another business incubator, the Startblock B2 Hub is intended to kickstart the area’s innovation and creative industries after phasing out coal. ‘It serves as a place of exchange,’ explain the architects, ‘among start-up founders, the urban society and the university community.’ For this reason, the ground floor features a predominantly glazed facade, ‘emblematic of the building’s function as an open threshold.’

The upper floors, meanwhile, look like a creative ideas board, filled with flapping post-it notes, but as the architects explain, ‘the semi-transparent textile provides not only shading but privacy for the building’s work areas. The screens sculpturally articulate the building, using the city’s colours to define its identity.’

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