Located in Odense, Denmark, the 2,800 square meter headquarters for Danish global supply chain company Dymak has been designed by BIG LEAP – the in-house Architecture, Landscape, Engineering and Product Design team of Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) – with high energy performance at heart while also creating a comfortable work environment that can be adapted to the company’s future growth.
Set to achieve DGBN Gold and Heart Certification, the headquarters are characterized by a circular shape and a grid-like facade that references the Danish architectural tradition of half-timbering. The facade consists of a series of 44 radial cross-laminated timber (CLT) frames, topped with an undulating roof covered in 880 PVCs, which are angled for harvesting solar energy throughout the year as well as reduce noise pollution for an inner open-air green courtyard.
The headquarters include offices, showroom space and shared facilities for socializing. To secure a high energy performance, the building’s facade opens towards the north, framing views of the manorial landscape of Funen. Towards the south, the facade contains external lamellas for passive solar shading and vertical closed panels of stretched metals to gradually close off the glass facade to avoid overheating.
The circular structure of Dymak HQ creates a connected office landscape that allows views across floors. The building’s volume is distributed to create variation in space offerings, facilitating a dynamic work environment where employees can set up workstations according to their needs.
The dynamic location of the headquarters is referenced in the round shape of the building, with no sharp corners in order to create a seamless flow inside the building. A central courtyard at the heart of the building is protected from the noise of the highway. Further, the headquarters’ programs are connected in a continuous flow to create a coherent and transparent workspace.
The headquarters’ interior includes a palette of natural and tactile materials such as wood, clay, and cork, carefully selected to mirror Dymak’s product portfolio. Recycled bricks are used throughout the ground floor as well as to mark outdoor pathways around the building and in the courtyard.
Acting as the green heart of the building, the courtyard draws in the surrounding landscape to its core and features an amphitheater to offer break-out areas or a gathering space for social events. Designed by BIG Landscape, the courtyard’s design is repeated in the office’s surrounding landscape, where green pockets for socializing are placed close to the entry area.
