Innoasis / Helen & Hard

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Text description provided by the architects.Innoasis is an office building with a strong history transformed into a modern work environment. In 1978, Sverdrupsgate 27 was built as the headquarters of the newly established Norwegian Petroleum Directorate. The building had a rational plan and a clear and legible industrial building system made up of concrete columns and DT rib elements. This existing load-bearing system has been preserved and made visible in the new interior. The main transformational change was to turn the old backyard into a covered atrium which forms a new strong spatial center. A wooden structure has been implanted here creating new galleries for circulation, informal meeting places, and integrated green plants in the balustrades. This structure also holds the glass roof over the atrium. It consists of a framework of glulam beams and round, natural tree columns of spruce which hold the curved cut CLT floor elements.Two new volumes with pointed roofs complete the squared organization of the lofts around the atrium. The four roof volumes allow light and air into the office spaces on the third floor, adding the possibility for mezzanines and a variety of spaces to enhance and create an exciting landscape to inhabit. Additionally, the roofs provide angled surfaces for solar panels, rooftop sedum, flower meadows, and local plant species, adding to the ecological value of the site. The atrium forms the core and establishes the new social infrastructure of the building. Meeting rooms are gathered around the atrium in layers and flexible workspaces form an outer layer along the facades. The whole workspace, ceiling, and technical systems are organized and prepared in a grid system for easy future rearrangements that can be shifted between cellular offices and office landscapes.The atmospheric quality of the interior plays on the contrast between existing concrete structure in combination with new timber elements. Wooden slats laid between the concrete ribs and straw wallpaper in the atrium are also part of sound absorption elements contributing to very good acoustic quality. An existing spiral concrete stair is renovated and placed as a central feature in the atrium and façade panels and furniture elements have been reused throughout the transformation. Green plants are an important part of the architecture and are essential in creating the oasis-like atmosphere of the atrium. Although the building is around 1000m2 larger with the transformation, the thermal energy used for heating and cooling is reduced to 1/3 compared to the original building. Requirements for delivered energy are reduced to 1/4 of the original building. The project has a greenhouse gas reduction of over 50% compared to a reference building, equivalent to a full score for greenhouse gas reduction in BREAAM-NOR.