De Valschermkade

Practice what you preach

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At the Valschermkade, located in the creative industrial area de Schinkel within the Amsterdam ring road A10, we developed a new sustainable office building. A former steel workplace was completely renovated and converted into a sustainable office for Paul de Ruiter Architects where sustainability came first.

Themes: offices, interior, redevelopment

A green heart

With the renovation of an existing industrial building, Paul de Ruiter Architects made its first sustainable choice. The foundation, the walls, and the roof of the hall formed the basis for the transformation of the 1980 industrial hall into accommodation for the architectural firm. The old brick office that stood in front of the hall has made way for a fully glazed facade, which allows for plenty of daylight at the workstations, and the spot where the office used to now make way to park our bicycles, but above all a fantastic place to work and have lunch outside when the weather is nice.

Recycled and non-toxic biobased materials.

In the 6 meters high existing hall, a light warehouse floor was placed on the existing foundation, creating a large number of additional workplaces. To get extra daylight into the workspace, an atrium was created with a rooftop light. In this atrium an artwork c.q. tree table was designed by Anouk Vogel, which has become the social green heart of the building. For the construction materials, recycled and non-toxic biobased materials were used and the furniture is entirely according to the C2C principle. Instead of plastic Corona screens, the interior has planters that separate the workplaces.

Cold and heat storage in the soil.

We have designed our office according to the Trias Energetica principles where we have insulated heavily and get our energy from a sustainable mono source under our office. At 105 meters deep in the ground, we have stored the cold air of the winter which we use for cooling in the summer. The heat of the summer is also stored in the ground but at a depth of 70 meters. This heat is used in the winter to heat the building. Heat pumps support the process of cooling and heating. The building was recently calculated by an installation consultancy and has an A++ energy label.

Chameleon skin

The front facade is equipped with movable screens that we developed in 1999 for the Deys villa. During the day, when open, they form an awning and ward off the sun, and at night they go down and seal the facade against burglary. The movable facade consists of metal sheets, which are perforated to maintain an open character when closed. When opened, the shutters rise like a canopy above the glass facade.

Project details

Information

Gross floor area	970 m2
Program	Sustainable multi-tenant office
Start design	June 2007
Start construction	May 2008
Completion	May 2009
Location	De Schinkel, Amsterdam

Project Team

Client	Paul de Ruiter Architects
Project architect	Paul de Ruiter
Project team	Roel Rutgers, Annika Hermann, Nicolle Flagiello, Willem Jan Landman
Adv․ installations	Stauffer Technical Consultancy
Contractor	Bouwbedrijf M.J. de Nijs en Zonen
Project leader	Willem Jan Landman
Constructor	Broersma
Artwork	Anouk Vogel
Adv․ costs	Bouwhaven Consultants
W-Installer	ETB Vos
E-Installer	Interdaad Installbouw
Interior	Paul de Ruiter Architects
Photography	Pieter Kers

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