New building headquarters Booking.com | Amsterdam

Emblematic capstone of the Oosterdok

At the head of Oosterdokseiland in Amsterdam, the "grand finale" is taking place: the realization of Booking.com's international headquarters. With an area of 72,500 square meters - more than a third of the Oosterdokseiland - this multifunctional building is one of the largest inner-city projects in Western Europe.

For Booking.com, the unique location was the main reason for settling on Oosterdokseiland. The location on the IJ, near the center of Amsterdam and almost on top of Central Station, made this spot perfect for the Amsterdam-based IT company. In 2015, Booking.com came into contact with BPD, the developer of the entire Oosterdokseiland, through the municipality. UNStudio, in the person of Ben van Berkel, became involved in the project as architect and put the first sketches on paper.

Final subplan
"In recent years, Oosterdokseiland has grown into a dynamic place where many hundreds of people come daily to work, live and also go out," says Jeroen Galle, ODE project director on behalf of BPD. About the Booking.com headquarters, he says, "This last subplan is the final piece for the creation of this area, with views over the Oosterdok, the IJ and the old city center." Van Berkel adds, "The design for this fully integrated new city campus provides a multifunctional living and working environment with many public facilities. At the urban level, the building fits seamlessly into the existing street pattern. From the east side, the building forms an emblematic capstone of the Oosterdok."

As much design freedom as possible
In November 2015, Royal HaskoningDHV was added to the team to guide the project to market. "First we drew up the Program of Requirements," says René Karreman of Royal HaskoningDHV. "We allowed the architect as much freedom as possible in his design and only described what the building had to meet. For example, it had to be a sustainable building. It also had to offer sufficient flexibility to integrate a yet-to-be-determined work concept. Furthermore, we drew up principles for acoustic, building physics and thermal performance, among other things. During the design process we checked whether the proposals met the specified conditions." Royal HaskoningDHV also supervised Booking.com during the contractual process with BPD and provided stakeholder management. Karreman: "This extensive work required a lot of coordination with the municipality and province, among others."

Tech campus
The building's design is based on Booking.com's desire to create a "tech campus. This campus covers approximately 63,500 square meters and provides space for some 4,600 different types of workplaces, various social spaces, co-creation spaces, quiet workplaces, restaurants and a rooftop terrace. The open character of the campus is enhanced by the all-glass facade and two imposing atriums. The building also houses some 7,500 square meters of apartments, 1,500 square meters of public functions on the first floor, bicycle storage for 2,500 bicycles and an expansion of an existing parking garage.

Sustainability
With a BREEAM Excellent design certificate, Booking.com's new headquarters can rightfully call itself a sustainable building. Yet UNStudio does not see sustainability as just technical challenges and solutions. Van Berkel: "For us, sustainability is an integral design task with a strong focus on the well-being of people as users. The design had to have a positive impact on the environment and create a community, both in the building and with the city." From this vision, Van Berkel chose an "active design" with many walking connections and ample attention to light, views, sightlines, (spontaneous) encounters and social interaction. In addition, the spacious office floors offer maximum flexibility. 

Interaction with environment
UNStudio's design also enriches its immediate surroundings and the city. Through the transparent facades, life inside the building interacts with life outside it. For the residents of Amsterdam, the building is especially important because of its public space. The expectation is that a beautiful new and lively square will soon be created, as well as a new vista and route to the Dijksgracht and the Marineterrein.

Guardians of design and quality
Construction of Booking.com's headquarters began in January 2018. Both UNStudio and Royal HaskoningDHV remain involved until completion. UNStudio "monitors" the architectural design,Royal HaskoningDHV the quality and building physics aspects. "We regularly walk around the construction site to check whether the building meets the specified specifications," says Karreman. "After a complex but pleasant design process, we are now going to work together to ensure that a beautiful building will stand here. Not only for the residents and employees of Booking.com, but also for the residents and visitors of Amsterdam."

_{Text: Patricia van der Beek Image: UN Studio}

Latest generation Smart Building
A key asset used by Booking.com to provide maximum work comfort for its employees is its holistic approach to the technical system. The new headquarters will be equipped with state-of-the-art open and scalable Smart Building solutions, coupled with an ecosystem.

"The smart office and the smart workplace are all about increasing employee satisfaction," says Paul Persy, director/owner of Persy Control Services. "It provides a better user experience, increased well-being, enjoyment and operational efficiency."

The essence is in a regular system extended with an additional system of indoor positioning and machine learning algorithms. Thanks to this additional system, installations are automatically controlled according to the wishes of entitled persons. With an app, ID or tag, anyone can enter and change their preferred settings. "But authorized access can also be granted," Persy says.  

In addition to the climatic benefits, the system offers many extras in terms of security. After all, the system records who is in the building and where that person is staying. Persy: "It works like a GPS navigation system, but in a building. A great tool for signaling queues, improving processes, tracking fire, room comfort or monitoring lighting, for example. And all in real time." With this, Booking.com is making a substantial investment to create an inspiring work environment and keep employees engaged for as long as possible.

Smart E-tech in a prime Amsterdam location
In addition to prominent new construction projects on the Zuidas - the office buildings NoMA House and Hourglass - Van den Pol Elektrotechniek is now also active on another top location in Amsterdam: the last plot of the Oosterdokseiland. "Here, too, we are deploying multiple disciplines," says Jan van den Brink, project manager at the Montfoort-based specialist. 

Van den Pol's responsibilities include the complete E-installation plus fire alarm and evacuation systems in both the enlarged parking garage and the new Booking.com office. "It will be a smart building with plenty of sensors. Comfort and energy efficiency are at a high level, as is ease of use. The installations will be controlled via the building management system and an app."

Not otherwise

The complex will have LED lighting. "That is the standard for us; Van den Pol no longer makes anything else," Van den Brink said. "The 1,500 solar panels also contribute to the intended BREEAM-NL 'Excellent' label of this development." Noteworthy is the substantial emergency power supply. "Two generators of 2,000 kVA each ensure that even in the event of a power failure, business processes can continue uninterrupted." The size and complexity set the bar high for this project. "Our BIM knowledge comes into its own here. And when putting together the installation package, our experience with innovative technology is a great advantage."

Installations in a state-of-the-art office building
For the construction of the installations in ODE Amsterdam, Klimaatservice Holland from Hardinxveld-Giessendam is joining forces with Van den Pol Elektrotechniek from Montfoort. Under the name 'ICO' (Installatie Combinatie ODE) they are realizing the complete technical installations. The high-quality technology, large size and special location make this a challenging project.

Currently, the parties are considering the preparation of the work. "During the preparation phase, we are working out the entire project for BPD in BIM," says Jan Nederveen, ICO's project director. "Everything is engineered and drawn out in detail in 3D. This means that the total work is already digitally worked out before we actually start work." In preparation, ICO has two focal points. First is the basement, the technical heart of the building. This is where the heat and cold distributors, air treatment plant and emergency power units are set up. Through five shaft cores, hot, cold and ventilation air is distributed throughout the building. 

At least as much attention is required for the offices, which are largely air-conditioned with expanded metal climate ceilings. Here, all systems must be installed so that the employees can start working turnkey after completion. All facilities for computers, cameras and positioning must be available. "In addition, it is not just an office building," says Nederveen. "The building is state-of-the-art and it must still be so when it is occupied in 2021. That requires us to have foresight. Control and control technology must be 'smart' in tune with each other."

Sustainable installations for the smartest building in the Netherlands
A key desire of Booking.com is a "Smart Building. It wants an office campus that is smart and logical, so that users and visitors can easily find their way around. In addition, Smart Building has everything to do with technology. With technical devices such as phones, passes and bluetooth, users should enjoy maximum comfort in the building. 

"Smart Building is a woolly term," knows Dick van der Kooij, director of Techniplan Advisors. "Everyone in the technical industry is talking about it. For Booking.com, we clearly defined the term - in terms of installation. This resulted in a design with many sensors and smart installations, where everyone can enter their preferred settings. Just think about the amount of light, the height of the temperature and ventilation." 

Multipurpose
The installations are beautifully concealed. The ceilings contain the climate and lighting systems; the raised floors are used for ventilation. In the more than 1,000 rooms, the installations are extremely flexible. If someone changes preferences, this is quickly arranged with an app. Furthermore, connection possibilities for equipment and furnishings are realized everywhere. These make all rooms multifunctional and suitable for a variety of activities. Given Booking.com's BREEAM ambition, Techniplan Adviseurs has opted exclusively for environmentally conscious solutions and sustainable energy sources. 

Construction program New multifunctional building including housing, offices, public facilities and restaurants (72,500 m²)
Client BPD, Delft
Architect UNStudio, Amsterdam
Contractor Züblin, Stuttgart (DUI)
Construction supervision Royal HaskoningDHV, Amersfoort
Construction period 2018 - 2020