UNStudio has just unveiled a completed redesign of a former bank headquarters building called Fellenoord 15 in the Dutch city of Eindhoven.

The project transformed the former Rabobank HQ into a 32,000-square-meter (344,440-square-foot) governmental facility equipped with the latest building management technology and capable of hosting more flexible work concepts that are better constituted for the demands of our century.

Taking the shell of the existing building, UNStudio says they were able to save roughly 40% of the CO2 footprint required by new construction. Its design enables the use of a new public space between the building’s entrance and the adjacent bus station. A series of high-tech sensors decreases energy consumption while increasing the efficiency of workers’ use of the building through data. 

Geothermal heating and cooling, water-based climate ceilings, and solar panels further contributed to a BREEAM-Excellent sustainability rating. Biodiversity is also supported on the site by the choice of local plant species, an insect hotel, and bat and bird boxes.

Per the studio: “From a distance, the building has an unassuming appearance that is enhanced by large details such as voids, windows, roof articulation, and a clearly recognizable entrance. In the immediate vicinity, the building’s perforations become visible, and a subtle tactility and layering is created by the expanded mesh cladding. These design elements contribute to a subtle moiré effect in the plinth due to the double layer of expanded metal mesh.”

Formerly disparate office spaces are combined thanks to a connective landscape that consolidates the scattered masses, with quiet spaces placed along the building’s perimeter to counterbalance the more boisterous and collaborative workplaces placed further within.

The project was completed earlier in the year. UNStudio also recently won competitions to deliver transit hubs in Madrid and Austin and will begin work soon on another new green office concept located in Frankfurt, Germany.