Polytoren
The industrial site in Zwijnaarde near Ghent can be considered the birth place and physical home of the DOMO holding (now Dovesco). Here Domo Chemicals built its first and oldest factory: the poly tower. We propose to largely preserve it as a built testimony to the company’s history and achievements, yet we also want to update it to embody the ongoing transformation of a forwardlooking enterprise.
As such the old structure becomes the springboard for a completely reimagined building. This includes a thorough overhaul of the exterior and a sensitive insertion of new functions into the characteristic industrial spaces. Our design reflects the ambitions of a company that is forever evolving and adapting, building on the solid foundations laid in the past to dive headlong into the future.
A factory tower becomes a beacon of human industriousness
The existing factory building is a palimpsest of historical additions and transformations. In our design we endeavour to tease out the hidden potential of the structure. We strip away what is unnecessary or unsightly, before fitting it out to accommodate new programmes and activities.
We peel the outer brick skin from the façade, add insulation and reclad it with new masonry matching the old. While previously existing windows are set back, new windows are executed flush with the façade plane—introducing a subtle differentiation between old and new.
Two new penthouse floors crown the brick bulk of the existing factory structure, lifting it to new heights both physically and symbolically. A robust concrete exoskeleton spans both floors, adding a certain grandeur to the utilitarian structure and ensuring the internal layout remains largely column-free. The glazed façade provides a pleasing contrast with the solid masonry of the original building volume below. At night these two floors light up, transforming the building into a kind of lighthouse for the development, advertising the industrial activities on the site to the thousands of passersby on the neighbouring highway.
An existing building extension is replaced by a glazed volume housing the main vertical circulation. But the new programme and increased building height also require an extra escape stair. Making virtue of necessity, we turn this additional staircase into an intriguing sculptural volume snaking its way up the building. Finally, two big terraces are added to provide breakout and relaxation spaces with scenic views.
Internally, the generous ceiling heights of the industrial halls allow for the insertion of blackened steel mezzanine structures. Not only do they expand the usable floor area, they also encourage internal communication and introduce spatial intrigue into what would otherwise be a rather conventional stacking of office floors.
The upper levels of the tower house the offices of the different components of the Dovesco group. The lower floors are rented out to a variety of young and dynamic companies. Here is also space to explore new working configurations like co-working, flexible offices and studio spaces.
Rentable meeting spaces are provided on the mezzanine level. They are connected to each other with an eye-catching footbridge, the upturned structure functioning as balustrade. In order to foster an inclusive community and a holistic working environment, the ground floor is given over to collective spaces such as lounges, a bar and restaurant, also open to outsiders.
A car park hybrid and a sheltered green square
After POLO had won the design competition for the poly tower, the brief was expanded substantially. Rather than trying to fit more functions within the tower and risk that this design concept would collapse under its own weight, we proposed a separate building volume. Not only does this keep the poly tower’s design concept pure and simple, by locating the new structure at some distance we created a new public space that offers a unique proposition within the industrial grounds.
The new building is made up of two parts: a multi-storey carpark on the one hand and a range of collective facilities on the other. We locate these components next to each other (instead of on top of each other), letting them share a common vertical circulation. As such we ensure that the facilities could easily spill over onto parking floors—guaranteeing in-built functional flexibility. By stacking the collective facilities we create a compact volume with a human-scaled and animated façade towards the plaza, making the adjoining car park less overbearing a presence.
The renovated poly tower and the new building are linked by a glazed gallery, which becomes a kind of vestibule to both buildings. It also forms a visual and acoustic buffer which shields the plaza from the highway. This plaza is activated by semi-public functions from both ends: the poly tower’s reception spaces and restaurant on one end and an exhibition space on the new building’s ground floor at the opposite end.
On the new building’s upper floors we find multipurpose spaces that can be used for back offices or other services. Sandwiched in between sits an auditorium: its inclined seating arrangement becomes a sloping ceiling to the ground floor expo space. This opens it up towards the square in a generous gesture, drawing in daylight and welcoming in visitors. Here the building is wrapped in a skin of expanded metal mesh, while the open decks of the car park beyond will be covered in green vines climbing up a network of steel wires and mesh.
