NOATUM

When the company NOATUM invited us to participate in a closed competition to draft the new management centre for its facilities in the port of Valencia, we were faced for the first time with a totally hostile environment. A tremendously industrialised and harsh context where the human scale had been forgotten even in its offices. Faced with this adverse framework, we asked ourselves, how could we achieve a humanised environment on the scale of the employees within the immense sea of asphalt and machinery that the port company had deployed?

For this project we resorted to the concept of ISLAND, as an area clearly differentiated from the surrounding space. A more natural enclave on a human scale prepared to offer employees an optimal place, an oasis where they could carry out their work motivated and with a greater capacity for resolution.

In order to achieve these objectives, the following strategy was proposed: Firstly, a layout with a central core comprising the courtyard and the collective space was proposed, leaving the façades for the collaborative, individual and service areas. Secondly, the use of artificial light was avoided as much as possible, giving priority to the use of filtered natural light throughout the building thanks to the inner courtyard and the openings between the façade panels. Thirdly, the use of vegetation as insulation on the roof was proposed, and the trees in the outer ring as a buffer against the «heat island» effect produced by the immense asphalt esplanade outside. In addition, for the optimal functioning of the outer vegetation ring, rainwater storage tanks were designed for the water needs of the proposal. Fourthly, the island idea was emphasised with an oval envelope, created with prefabricated cross-laminated timber (CLT) panels oriented according to the programme, the solar orientation and the aggression of the surrounding exterior noise. And finally, different typologies of storage elements were designed according to whether the workplaces were individual, collective, or collaborative, to promote order and tranquillity in the space.

In short, the proposal succeeded in creating a workspace capable of having a positive impact on the well-being of the employees and, consequently, on improving the company’s efficiency.


Name:

NOATUM Management Centre


Typology:

Management centre


Location:

Port of Valencia


Year:

2016


Surface area:

800 m2


Developer:

Noatum S.L


Team:

Esther Gonzalez Aurignac, Tom Mossel