Incorporating the Environmental, social, and corporate governance objectives, the 45,000 m2 Office Tower in the Europaviertel in Frankfurt aims to be one of Germany's most sustainable office buildings. Designed by UNStudio in partnership with Groß & Partner in collaboration with OKRA landscape architects, the project focuses on environmental and social sustainability as an integral part of Frankfurt's green network. The ecological agenda includes a low-carbon load-bearing structure and recyclable construction materials. The architecture program offers a public urban space to add value to its surroundings to encourage communication and gathering.
Located in the Europa-Allee urban green corridor, the NION Tower responds intelligently to the weather and resource-saving actual demand. The project incorporates a photovoltaic facade, rainwater management, geothermal heating and cooling (30%-40% cooling / 70% heating), intelligent building management, demand-based air conditioning and LED lighting, energy recuperating elevators, e-charging stations with smart load management, and green and open work environments. Prefabricated components will be used in construction alongside a modular supporting structure. The sustainable concept for NION responds to the German Sustainable Building Council and counts on the collaboration of OKRA landscape architects. Besides becoming one of Germany's most sustainable office buildings, the office tower will be the striking focal point on the route into downtown Frankfurt, one of the major financial cities in the world.
The architecture design works alongside passive design strategies. By intersecting two volumes, where the northwest and southeast corners are cut away, the geometry emphasizes a striking vertical effect by lush greenery. The angled facade surfaces contrast dynamically with the cut-out corners picking up the lines of the surrounding perimeter block development to unify the different urban scales surrounding it. The vertical intersection of the inner corner on the northwest side also divides the building into a tower and podium, giving the building a slenderer appearance.
All the spaces in NION are designed to enhance the working climate and encourage communication and gathering. While the vertical green in the external articulation anchors within the cityscape, further greening plays an essential role throughout the project. The green lobby, the semi-public interior space at the base, and the green zones on the office floors combine green terraces and roof gardens to create an exciting relationship between interior and exterior. Additionally, dining establishments, a bakery, and a café on the ground and first upper floor integrate a semi-public area.
UNStudio project is intended to be a vehicle for greenery and biodiversity in Frankfurt, conveying ecological benefits to the environment while improving the microclimate and contributing to the well-being of visitors and users of the building. UNStudio is also working with Groß & Partner on the currently under construction FOUR project in Frankfurt, one of the densest inner-city developments in Europe.
