Summary
In Wilrijk near Antwerp, the architects office Storme-Storkebaum-Van Ranst designed a new office building for the papermanufacturing company Scaldia. At the same time the existing warehouses were reorganised and both buildings were integrated into one operational unit.
The new offices were conceived as a stimulating professional cocoon, allowing direct contact with other collegues, however avoiding mutual disturbance. The architects drew on their experience in userfriendly office environments, taking into account ergonomics, acoustics, thermal and solar insulation, climate control and visual interference.
On “the bridge”, literally connecting offices and storehouses, a restaurant provides a meeting point for collegues of different services. To Scaldia this bridge means the center point of all internal communications.
The new building is both sober and effective and responds completely to all the aspirations of an ambitious, service- and environment-minded concern.