Foster + Partners-designed new office complex has broken ground in Belval Luxembourg. 

Named ICÔNE, the 18,800 square-metre office building is filled with light and greenery, encouraging a spirit of co-creation and collaboration. 

The new office building forms a flexible layout addressing the need for safe working environments and the changes to the workplace that will emerge in the future. 

Foster + Partners also takes cues from the rich industrial heritage of Belval, revitalising the area by making a positive contribution to the site and its surroundings.

The studio first released plans in 2018 and in the new renderings, it seems that they revised and refined plans in a detailed manner, which shows a clear materiality that will be applied to the building. 

"The project is designed to have open, flexible workspaces that respond to the emerging models of work today," said Darron Haylock, Partner, Foster + Partners.

"The atrium is a green light-filled space that is very much the social heart of the project, providing visual connectivity and a dynamic atmosphere for both work and play. Biophilia, the green landscaping, natural ventilation and visual connectivity all promoting collaboration and healthy wellbeing."

Designed as sn integral part of the larger masterplan for the area, the new office building's design scheme relates to its neighbouring buildings and addresses the different characteristics of the principal axes to the east and west. 

Its entrances are articulated differently in response to the urban street and civic plaza. The building edge along Porte de France contains shops, while Place de l'Académie is complemented by cafés and restaurants on the ground floor.

Foster + Partners is working with local practice Beiler Francois Fritsch on the project and the building is arranged as two wings enclosing the central atrium, wrapped by a distinctive orthogonal façade and roof which emphasise the structural grid and give the building a unified industrial look. The historic and symbolic Belval blast furnace forms the central focus of the dramatic vista from the atrium.

"The fluidity of the internal space contrasts with the building’s dignified formal exterior," said Foster + Partners. 

"The atrium resolves the level changes between the street and the plaza through a series of stepped terraces that create a spectacular arrival sequence," added the firm. 

The design is based on open circulation adding the vibrancy of the internal spaces, with communal terraces for informal meetings and break out spaces at higher levels overlooking the central volume.

Glimpses of the interior green spaces are seen through a series of punched volumes that intersect the gridded structure. The façade is both structural and environmentally responsive, providing an integrated solution which allows for internal column-free office spaces as well as solar shading and maximised internal daylight. 

The design aims for a BREEAM Excellent rating and will be WELL Building Standard® certified.

All images courtesy of Foster + Partners

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