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Paulina is a striking name for an equally eye-catching building on an island. This energy-neutral multi-tenant office building on Businesspark Honderdland in Maasdijk is named after the mother of Clarens van der Hout of the real estate developer of the same name. Moen & van Oosten Architekten designed the plans and Van Mierlo Bouw & Ontwikkeling of Maasdijk was commissioned to build this project. The design is based on a central axis, which continues in the building in the form of a "green" atrium. To the left and right of this transparent central space float the office wings, which stand out because of their glass facades combined with light aluminum facade bands.
Clarens van der Hout got the inspiration for his office building on an island from architect Moen, who indicated during a presentation that one day he would like to realize a project with several islands next to each other. Paulina is located at the head of an island and was part of the last phase of the expansion of Business Park Honderdland in Maasdijk. The building partners did not want to create a sum of offices, but rather a building that aims to create a community for businesses.
"The design is built around a central axis, which runs across the island and is continued into the building in the form of an atrium. This central space forms the green lung of the building, so to speak, with tropical trees rooted in the ground and a green roof terrace. To the left and right are the office wings," said Wim van der Ploeg, project manager at Van Mierlo Bouw & Ontwikkeling. "The entire building rests on steel pillars and an imposing staircase and two luminous cores provide access to the grounds. This creates a covered parking area under the building. The second floor was elaborated as semi-public space with a flexible layout that combines meeting spaces, flexi-workspaces, meeting and presentation rooms and catering. Striking elements on the floors are the light aluminum façade bands, which function as glazed balconies with fixed exterior sunshades and continue into the atrium."
Paulina includes 4,000 square meters of office space and 800 square meters of hospitality and general facilities. In addition to its transparency and green character, this new building also stands out for its sustainability, energy neutrality and use of renewable materials. "Among other things, this building uses heat pumps and a climate system in the ceilings. Solar panels generate the energy needed," Van der Ploeg said. "Steps are also being taken toward circularity. All the facades consist of recycled aluminum and for the ceilings and paneling, plato-wood was used, which was boiled and baked."
"As a family construction company that has been around for 95 years, we have extensive experience and 'know-how' in a wide variety of projects: residential, commercial, shopping centers and healthcare properties. Yet this project was technically challenging due to the combination of many different elements and connections. The skeleton is all steel with a concrete core in both office wings. Furthermore, glass is combined with facade elements in aluminum, steel and composite. The realization of the atrium with its so-called greenhouse facades and the glass roof was very labor-intensive and it required careful coordination and planning to get everything on site on time and assembled with the aerial platform. We are therefore very satisfied with the final result of the project, which we realized thanks to good cooperation and communication with the construction partners. All the offices were delivered as shells, after which the tenants will finish the spaces according to their wishes."
The symmetrically constructed wings of the multi-tenant Paulina office building in Maasdijk float as it were next to an impressive glass atrium with beautiful transparent glass facades, a feat of daring by Allicon Aluminium Lichtconstructies BV. The company from Kwintsheul realizes glass constructions with steel and aluminum for the most diverse projects: glass canopies, curtain walls, gallery sealings, climate facades, ..... Everything is tailor-made to meet the client's wishes and requirements.
"We were involved in this project by Moen & van Oosten Architekten in 2019 to help think about the design and to translate the ideas into a technically and budget feasible concept. We were then responsible for the engineering and realization of the entire atrium," says director Jorien Boer. "The industrial look with steel tubes of this central area perfectly matches the more traditional style with aluminum tube profiles of the office wings. The facades are designed in combination with the walkways in the atrium. Thus, the walkways support vertically on the façade profiles, while those profiles themselves support horizontally on the walkways - a thoughtful but challenging interplay of elements."
Although the atrium roof is transparent and lets in plenty of daylight, overheating in the space is avoided. "We integrated insulated sandwich panels on the south side, while solar-control glazing controls solar irradiation on the north side. Moreover, the windows can be opened over a length of 10 meters using a single motor to allow intensive natural ventilation," Boer concludes. "This technique is often used in greenhouse farming. The climate control is computer-controlled based on temperature, wind direction, wind speed and precipitation and communicates with the building management system."
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