The Bunker Tower: New eye-catcher in Eindhoven's skyline

The Light Tower, the Evoluon, the Blob or the Philips Stadium: no shortage of iconic places in Eindhoven. The Bunker Tower will soon be added to this list. The 100 meters high tower will visibly change the skyline of Eindhoven and add a new dimension to housing. The iconic residential tower will house 127 rental apartments and 83 owner-occupied apartments ranging from 50 to approximately 249 m2, with stunning views of the city. In addition to housing, a grand café (900 m2) is planned on the first floor and the BunkerTower will provide space for offices (2,750 m2). The design of the building is based on the idea of a rising residential tower that opens up to the city - from a brutalist "closed" identity to a transparent "open" residential tower.

The BunkerTower forms the hinge point between downtown and green Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) Campus and is being built on the site of The Bunker. This former TU/e student center was built in 1969, to a design by renowned Rotterdam architect Huig Maaskant (Scheveningen Pier, Euromast) and was the place for a vibrant student life for many generations of TU/e students. In recent years, however, the brutalist concrete building has fallen into disrepair. With the realization of the Bunker Tower, The Bunker is now getting a valuable second life, with the iconic architectural style being preserved and/or restored. Among other things, the striking "heads" of The Bunker will be restored in all their spaciousness and allure. On the outside, the brutalist concrete will be thoroughly cleaned and repaired and, on the inside, characteristic elements will be appropriately brought back, such as the wooden wall paneling, the red steel railings and the bluestone floors and fireplaces. Some parts of the existing Bunker were demolished to make room for the new Bunker Tower.

440 piles

Van Wijnen is responsible for the realization of the BunkerTower. "We have been involved in this project from the moment the final design was shaped," says Jasper van der Meer, Deputy Director of Construction at Van Wijnen. "In a construction team with installer Hoppenbrouwers Engineering we further engineered Powerhouse Company's design and looked at where further efficiency improvements were possible. For example, to increase seriality and technical solvability, resulting in minimal construction time." After the project was awarded by BunkerToren BV (development combination Real Estate Development Company and Being Development), construction began on April 29, 2019. For the foundation of the residential tower, Van Wijnen drilled 440 Fundex piles into the ground, with a length of approximately 38 meters. "On top of this, a one-and-a-half-story parking basement was constructed. In addition, this houses the basins for the sprinkler system and the irrigation system," says Eric Nagel, Project Manager at Van Wijnen. "From the basement floor to the fourth floor, a traditional construction with wall formwork and wide slab floors was chosen. Above that, at our request, all floors were tunneled, with a tunneling cycle of only 6 days per floor."

12 elements per day

The exterior facade of The BunkerTower consists of aluminum facade elements finished with natural stone and wooden cladding. "The frames for the facade were placed on a special mounting frame," Nagel said. "Then the natural stone was mounted, after which the whole thing was hoisted up as one package. Up to 12 facade elements were hoisted up per day, allowing us to finish a full floor every five days. Thanks to this assembly method, we were able to assemble the facade without scaffolding." A special (climbing) system was also developed for the loggias, he says, allowing these areas too to be finished to a high standard in one go.

Last summer, Van Wijnen started the finishing work. "All apartments will be equipped with a complete bathroom, toilet and kitchen," says Nagel. "In addition, buyers have a choice of a wallpaper-ready or sauce-ready finish. Everything else will be handled by the residents themselves." The hallway areas will be completely finished with carpeting, scanning wallpaper and suspended ceilings. "When you soon enter the building through the main entrance, you enter an impressive space with a natural stone floor and imposing green wall." 

Living in the green

The green wall fits perfectly with the greenery of the park landscape, which will be created around the residential tower. On top of the fourth and ninth floors there will be large flower boxes. And also the balconies will have large planters, which will be irrigated automatically. Solar panels will soon provide the primary energy needs, while a heat and cold system will supply the building's heating and cooling needs.  

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