'EEA & tax offices' by UNstudio in groningen, the netherlands
all images courtesy UNstudio
image by ronald tilleman


internationally practicing office UNstudio, with consortium DUO2, has completed 'EEA & tax offices',
a 92-meter tall office building for the education executive agency and tax offices in groningen,
the netherlands. characterized by a series of undulating curves that wrap around two an
asymmetrical base and tower form, the project is one of the most sustainable large-scale
office buildings in europe.



views of the 'fins' that wrap around the building
images by ronald tilleman


taking into account its site - local woodland with rare and protected species - the building is
organic and aerodynamic in its expression, featuring a multitude of curves in its overall form.
the circumscribing horizontal stripes which protrude out and shade the glazed surface lend
the structure a dynamic and identifiable character. a large public city garden will surround
the plot and provide a meeting place for the local citizens with a multifunctional pavilion.



street view
image by ronald tilleman


accommodating 2,500 workstations as well as an underground garage for 1,500 bicycles
and 675 cars, the project seeks to focus on the user's functions as well as the quality of
the working atmosphere. 'we paid a great deal of attention to how people would move
through the building,' says ben van berkel, principal architect of UNstudio. 'the office spaces
are designed in such a way that they do not create simple linear corridors leading to dead ends
but instead each corridor has a route which introduces a kind of landscape into the building.
you can take endless walks through the building, where there is a great deal of transparency,
also towards the surrounding landscape.'



reception
image by ronald tilleman


conceived to be one of europe's most sustainable large new office buildings, the project is
the result of extensive consultation and research. the involvement of these specialists from
the start directed not only the creative aspect of the design but also reduced the total costs
of the construction. some sustainable features that holistically reduce the building's
energy consumption includes the minimization of material expenditure from compacting
the floor height from 3.60 m to 3.30 m; underground long term energy storage and
concrete core activation; natural lighting and ventilation; as well as the flexibility of
the structure's lifecycle, which enables it to easily be transformed into housing in
the future without major modifications.



views of interior spaces
images by christian richter



staircase
image by ronald tilleman



grand cafe
image by ronald tilleman



booths in the tax office
image by ronald tilleman



image by ewout huibers



night view
image by ronald tilleman



diagram showing airfoil shape



facade concept

project info:

client: dutch government buildings agency (RGD)
building surface: 58,040 m2 offices / 21,000 m2 parking / 1,500 m2 pavilion
building volume: 215, 000 m3
building site: 31,134 m2

design team (UNstudio): ben van berkel, caroline bos, gerard loozekoot with
jacques van wijk, frans van vuure, lars nixdorff and jesca de vries, ramon van der heijden,
alicja mielcarek, eric den eerzamen, wendy van der knijff, machiel wafelbakker,
timothy mitanidis, maud van hees, pablo herrera paskevicius, martijn prins, natalie balini,
peter moerland, arjan van der blick, alexander hugo, gary freedman, jack chen,
remco de hoog, willi van mulken, yuri werner, machteld kors, leon bloemendaal, erwin horstmanshof
interior: studio linse
structure and installations: arup
landscaping: lodewijk baljon
wayfinding: buro van baar
internal logistics: YNNO

consultants:
acoustics: DGMR
fire prevention: EFPC
prefab structure: ingenieursbureau wassenaar
drawing agency: BTS bouwkundug tekenburo sneek
maintenance: ISS nederland B.V.
environmental technology: peutz
ecology: WUR (wageningen university & research centre)
management and costing: strukton bouw e vastgood
construction: strukton betonbouw
installations: strukton worksphere