The Frank O. Gehry Novartis Campus Construction was a joint venture between Nissen Wentzlaff Architects, an Arcoplan general planner, local architects, and the construction manager. It was designed and built between 2003 and 2009 and consists of an above-ground section for HR department offices, a 200-seater restaurant, and an underground section that houses the Learning Factory and an auditorium with 600 seats. The reinforced concrete building is encompassed by free-form steel beams, which in turn support the transparent, 3-dimensional curved glass envelope. Close cooperation was required with Gehry Partners and Gehry Technologies for this task. Digital Project was the basis for the project's success. All project participants were accustomed to new ways of working. The general planning team at times included up to 150 participating specialist engineers and architects who were internationally coordinated and synchronised. Questioning and re-interpreting manufacturing and assembly methods was just one of the regular challenges, as well as the development and manufacture of the prototypes. Conventional construction site logistics and the usual construction process had to be adapted to the unconventional architecture Many processes and operations were relearned or invented. A major focus of the project was the digitalisation of construction with which the millimetre accurate implementation of the geometry defined in the 3D model could be ensured by the contractor.
Photos: Thomas Mayer
The Frank O. Gehry Novartis Campus Construction was a joint venture between Nissen Wentzlaff Architects, an Arcoplan general planner, local architects, and the construction manager. It was designed and built between 2003 and 2009 and consists of an above-ground section for HR department offices, a 200-seater restaurant, and an underground section that houses the Learning Factory and an auditorium with 600 seats. The reinforced concrete building is encompassed by free-form steel beams, which in turn support the transparent, 3-dimensional curved glass envelope. Close cooperation was required with Gehry Partners and Gehry Technologies for this task. Digital Project was the basis for the project's success. All project participants were accustomed to new ways of working. The general planning team at times included up to 150 participating specialist engineers and architects who were internationally coordinated and synchronised. Questioning and re-interpreting manufacturing and assembly methods was just one of the regular challenges, as well as the development and manufacture of the prototypes. Conventional construction site logistics and the usual construction process had to be adapted to the unconventional architecture Many processes and operations were relearned or invented. A major focus of the project was the digitalisation of construction with which the millimetre accurate implementation of the geometry defined in the 3D model could be ensured by the contractor.
Photos: Thomas Mayer