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1 WHAT USEDTO BETHE BOILER HOUSE AND ENGINE ROOMS FOR THE PHILIPS POWER PLANT IN EINDHOVEN IS NOW A CREATIVE HUB FOR ONE OF EUROPE'S HOTTEST DESIGN FIRMS

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WORDS _Giovanna Dunmall PHOTOGRAPHS _Studio Tycho Merijn

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Not everyone gets to say they work in one of their city's

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most iconic buildings.

tion agency VanBerlo recently achieved these bragging rights by relocating its headquarters to Eindhoven's Philips poweÍ plant, a massive manufacturing complex that had been shuttered since 1992. Originally built in 1955 and spread across three vast industrial parks, the engine roorn and boiler house known as Striip-T used to power all the Philips factories. The building, which

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open kitchen and

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Innovation Powerhouse. The seductive idea is tl-rat

the fuel being prodnced here is no lor-rger coal, gas or oil but - yon guessed it - innovation.

Turning an abandoned plant into a multi-tenant hub destined to attract

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- Rotterdam's Atelier

Berlo, and Eugelink Architectuur and De Bever Architecten of Eindhoven

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was converted and renovated by three practices

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But leacling Dr.rtch proclucr clesign and innova-

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the best start-ups was neither a swiÍt nor painless undertaking. The site was officially designated as a municipal rnonument a year into the design process, and the proiect therefore required more permits along the way. What's more, the interior was riddled witl-r asbestos that took Íbur years to remove. Even the rnachinery was covered in the stuff. "There were these beautifirl steel wheels, for example, but they were connected by mbber tl-rat had asbestos

it," explains Janne van Berlo, principal and founder of Atelier van Berlo.

Nothing could be salvaged, but since the architects were aÍter a creative work environment, much of the equipment would have had to be moved out anyway. "In Eindhoven, there are already so many offices that are filled with old machinery," says van Berlo. "We wanted to do sornething diÍferent." or-r

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The main attraction of the 2,50O-square-metre office is the common area, where double-height windows and a raised floor of knotty spruce boards give the space its warmth.

Furnishings by Hay and Vitra, with Iighting by local designer Alex de Witte.

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"ln Eindhovenn there are already so many offices that are fill Ti

with old machinery.

We wanted to do something different"

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fluorescent tubes that have been retrofitted with the company,s latest range of Wi-Fi-enabled, colour-changing LEDs. "It's a nice mix of new technology and Philips history," says van Berlo.

In keeping with the idea of a shared environrnent, the heart ofthe agency

The interior may have been stripped bare, but it hasn't lost its character.

The coffered concrete ceiling has been retained along with 5.2-metre-high

windows typical oftheir era. The space features two original coal chutes, now converted, respectively, into a meeting room and a 30-square-metre auditorium. Located on the sixth floor, they are rented out by another tenant, a company that creates indoor LED-driven farming solutions. What,s more, the conversion proiect has reinstated a "missing,, section of the power plant. "If you look at the architect's original drawings, the building was meant to be symmetrical," explains van Berlo. "The building, which had been modified several times over the years, was never fully completed.', Two missing grids have now been added in the form ofa vertical steel garclen that doubles as an unusually attractive flre escape and houses a meeting room and a glass elevator. Doing something different was a deliberate choice.

"Completing the building without showing what was old or what was new didn't do the monument instice," says van Berlo. '.We wanted to show what could have been there and not pretend it had always been there."

As anchor tenant and project initiator, VanBeÍlo wanted its ofnces to set LEVEL

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the tone for the rest of the building. A new concrete storey the architects inserted was given a board-formed f,nish so that it had the same lived-in look as the original concrete. Varnished spruce was used on the floor, adding a warm atmosphere that impresses but doesn't intimidate. you enter the company's 2,50O-squaÍe-metre omce via a reception area, where there

H-profile construction beams. Above it, in building's origins, hang several old-school philips

is a desk made from battered a neat reference to the

is a central communal space. In this double-height area are a sculptural walnut table and refectory-style tables as well as a Viroc coffee counter at one end. On the other side is a space with banquette and sofa seating, coffee tables and a showcase wall of spruce shelving units filled with proiects the firm has been working on. This is where clients are welcomed and where informal meetings are held.

The lounge is raised one step up on a timber platform ancl connected to wooden amphitheatre designed for group lectures. The massive room - lit by talented young Dutch desigr.rer Alex de Witte's curvaceous Big Bubble a

lights hung as low as possible and populated with vibrant chairs and sofas by the likes ofVitra and Hay - feels a lot cozier than youd expect. Even ifyou

sitting there alone and working, it feels intimate and protected.

The office's design studios are located around this central space in a U-shape and separated by glass walls and oversized potted plants. ..I am not a big fan of green walls because they've become a cliché,,'says van Berlo. are

But putting in potted fiddle-leaf flg trees had the dual function of providing greenery and shielding the studios where confidential work takes place.

The building has its own coffee counter and kitchen, but, in true collaborative spirit, staff are encouraged to go down to the ground floor and eat in the restaurant, which is open to all the tenants and will eventually serve the

public

as well. In nice weather, tables and chairs spill outdoors. The ground floor also houses a glazed central "street" where staff and visitors can access the main staircase. "This space has multiple purposes," explains van Berlo.

"It gives structure to the building where all the tenant entrances are located, and it brings daylighr in rhrough a large skylight." In lieu of a sterile lobby, this luminous space is where you can ask for directions or order a cup of barista-made, freshly ground coffee to enjoy on the terrace. AZ vonberlo.n!

JUNE 2O,I8_ AZURE- O75