spillmann echsle architekten
On Labs
best architects 24
interior work
Place
Zurich, Switzerland
Studio
Photos
Mikael Olsson
Description
On Labs houses workplaces for 1,000 employees in a
17-storey high-rise in Zurich West, one of the city's former industrial areas
that has been attracting many urban entrepreneurs lately. The design, a
collaboration between Spillmann Echsle, Specific Generic and the creative team
at On, expands on the themes of the building designed by EM2N. Working in this
triumvirate meant a deep engagement with the product itself, with sport and
movement, as well as with the internalised company vision and corporate
structure. Fine architectural nuances differentiate the various spaces. Exposed
concrete stairs with a jagged underside connect the Lab to the many floors
above. At the Lab, only a few openings in orange-tinted glass provide visitors
with carefully orchestrated views into the research and development department.
Above, the exposed concrete stairs in the tower area are curved, leading through
the building by means of circular cut-outs of various sizes and creating a
central reference to the movement inherent to the On brand. This circular motif
is repeated in the round windows scattered across floors in meeting rooms and
studios. The choreography of wide, inviting staircases tapering to gradually steeper
stairs on the upper floors creates a reference to a mountain climb, which inspired
the brand’s creation.