Entrance Building, Graphisoft Park

The new building appears as a transparent volume, contrasting the existing offices. The light, pavilion-like building has an outer shell of glass. The geometric ornament of the glass panels evokes something programmable, something digital, something three-dimensional. Depending on the time of day, the appearance of the outer skin is transforming continuously – sometimes the glass is transparent, then it reflects its surrounding and sunlight, emphasizing, or absorbing its own ornament. Looking out from inside, the geometric pattern is drawn on the landscape. On the ground floor there are positioned a central reception and a café. The two middle storeys host offices for rent, while on the upper floor with large terraces around, Graphisoft Park Real Estate Developer’s own offices can be found. Our task was to design a general layout – the interiors being designed by tenants themselves.

Graphisoft Park, a technology park at the site of a former gas factory area along the Danube is known for its high architectural quality offices placed in a natural setting. The renovated buildings of gasworks host universities, while the new buildings, built between 19982018 with mostly brick façades host several offices, laboratories. In addition, the site is situated beside an ancient roman settlement, Aquincum, our project area being their burial place. Our task was to design a building at the entrance of the park that is able to represent this multifaceted environment. A building that welcomes visitors and is able to connect the park with the city. In contrast with the existing offices, the entrance building is a light, transparent volume with a double skin. Besides being transparent, it is also able of reflecting its surrounding and it acts as a lamp by night. The space inbetween dissolves the boundaries of inside and outside, offering a puffer space, a space of entering for the visitors and intimacy for the tenants.

The building is designed on a 4.5x4.5-meter grid, having a central reinforced concrete core (elevator, staircase and bathrooms) and steel columns of minimum dimensions (20x20 cm) and maximum span (9 meter on the edges), providing thus flexible office areas along the façade. The fully glazed building has an outer shell of glass, supported by a galvanized steel structure. The glass panels of the outer skin are adjusted in 3 different angles in order to protect their tenants from traffic, their neighbours from sunlight reflection and provide perspective for the ones standing on the terraces between the two shells. In the in-between space, that has a positive climatic effect, terraces are placed on the first and second floors, entrances are positioned on the ground floor, and concrete window cases are hung on the upper level. Concrete slabs for fire safety have also been placed here. The 2x12 mm thick, laminated glass panels provide a distinguished spatial effect due to the fact, that the ornament is printed on different sides (4 different positions totally, printing on both sides of the glass panels).