Harting Office
Minden
,
Germany
1999-2001
Project
1999
Realization
2000-2001
Commissioned by
Harting,
Minden
Local architect
Planungsgruppe Minden
Surface area
5‘000 m²
Built volume
22‘000 m³
The building for the German sales headquarters of the Harting company is set in a strategic spot on the site of an old Prussian bastion, which is still present with a green area – Simeons Glacis – adjacent to the plot housing the new structure. Extending along Portastrasse, the main thoroughfare leading into the historic centre of the town of
Minden
, the new building strives to link its contemporary content with the existing historic surroundings. The powerful presence of neoclassical buildings around Simeonsplatz, aligned in part along Portastrasse, sketches out a specific urban context with which all subsequent works must interact. The new volume, aligned with the buildings on Portastrasse, establishes a dialogue with the extant structures by using traditional materials, and it creates a compelling image by expressing the gravity of these volumes. The outcome is a sense of urban complicity among the buildings: this new presence enhances and, in turn, is enhanced by the existing structures. The building opens southward along the main road at the level of the enormous sloped roof that effectively acts as a fifth façade but is also the main front. This surface - noteworthy in size (approximately 1000 m2) – presents a shed-shaped cross-section that captures and filters natural light to enhance the comfort of the work areas beneath it, which are organised into terraces. The unique quality of the southerly light streaming in from above is augmented by the broad windows facing north, offering those inside the building views of Simeons Glacis. Special attention to the impact of natural lighting, the dazzling treatment of the interior surfaces, the use of natural materials and systems of reusing passive energy (for example the recovery of rainwater for internal use) create the effect of positive energy, important for a building of this kind.
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