Centre for Technology & Design, Austria

By Zoya

Photography: AllesWirdGut Architektur/ Guilherme Silva Da Rosa

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The architectural concept of the new Centre for Technology and Design in St. Pölten, Austria fosters a congenial atmosphere among diverse alumni and, thus serves two purposes: it creates a contemporary working atmosphere and a high degree of interdisciplinarity…

A winning competition entry in 2011, Viennese-based architect AllesWirdGut’s contemporary design concept does not deviate much from the predictable central lobby that connects all floors and common areas (auditorium, break out areas and presentation areas) and opens into an inner courtyard, which unfolds a large plaza between the new and old main building. However, spaces become distinctive inside the building (spread across 12.980 sq. m), where more formal and informal meeting areas are defined by their style of being furnished: simple white furniture denotes formal seating arrangements while green and yellow chairs and benches invite students to be at their comfortable best.

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Great emphasis is laid on engaging a mix of workshops, study spaces and seminar rooms so that theory and practical lessons may seamlessly mingle. Keeping this in mind, the first floor is devoted to the university administration, while the ground floor and basement are allotted for laboratories, teaching rooms, workshops and IT rooms.

 

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The architects pay key attention to the form and function of the building, so much so that these features are clearly visible both, outside and inside the building. The building has a distinctive character, defined by V-shaped columns on the building’s facade and glass as boundary. The architects have stuck to bare essentials, when it comes to constructions materials. The construction and MEP (mechanical, electrical and plumbing architecture) facilities are also fully exposed with no cladding or opaque skin, suggesting clarity and transparency.

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The thermal skin of glass provides maximum transparency while the concrete structure responds to the adjacent main building, a protected heritage concrete construction designed by renowned Austrian post-war architect Karl Schwanzer.

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While the facade “communicates the purpose of the building”, the inside “creates adequate setting for ideas”, the firm explains.