JetBrains, an international software development company, is set to receive a new green work campus overlooking the Gulf of Finland where health and connectivity are at the core of the design.
Central to the building’s design is a large, vertically stepped indoor atrium. This open space connects to an outdoor courtyard and outdoor terraces and will provide clear views of the Gulf of Finland. The atrium forms the core of the new JetBrains community. The ample open space will contrast with the office floors, which are based on team and individual focus instead of an open-plan approach.
Central meeting rooms, breakout spaces, auditoriums, and the central restaurant will be organized along the stepped atrium. Bridges will span the large open areas while carefully designed and intertwined biophilia forms the natural backdrop for all indoor activities. A lobby space will create the first views towards the atrium upon entering the building and include cloakroom facilities, showers, and exercise spaces. A courtyard at podium level will provide outdoor overflow space.
A highly transparent stable zigzag glazed facade was chosen for the large atrium, spanning as many as five floors in some areas. The facade design blocks heat gain while still providing daylight. A soft acoustic shading device on the inside of the glazed skin and cantilevers shade the facade. The lower and upper volumes use a rational grid facade, composed of unitised elements. Protruding glazed ceramic elements provide shading, reflect light, and create a tactility and reflection that will play with the constantly changing light of the skies over St. Petersburg and the Gulf.
Related Stories
| Aug 11, 2010
Thrown For a Loop in China
While the Bird's Nest and Water Cube captured all the TV coverage during the Beijing Olympics in August, the Rem Koolhaas-designed CCTV Headquarters in Beijing—known as the “Drunken Towers” or “Big Shorts,” for its unusual shape—is certain to steal the show when it opens next year.
| Aug 11, 2010
Top of the rock—Observation deck at Rockefeller Center
Opened in 1933, the observation deck at Rockefeller Center was designed to evoke the elegant promenades found on the period's luxury transatlantic liners—only with views of the city's skyline instead of the ocean. In 1986 this cultural landmark was closed to the public and sat unused for almost two decades.
| Aug 11, 2010
200 Fillmore
Built in 1963, the 32,000-sf 200 Fillmore building in Denver housed office and retail in a drab, outdated, and energy-splurging shell—a “style” made doubly disastrous by 200 Fillmore's function as the backdrop for a popular public plaza and outdoor café called “The Beach.
| Aug 11, 2010
Integrated Project Delivery builds a brave, new BIM world
Three-dimensional information, such as that provided by building information modeling, allows all members of the Building Team to visualize the many components of a project and how they work together. BIM and other 3D tools convey the idea and intent of the designer to the entire Building Team and lay the groundwork for integrated project delivery.
| Aug 11, 2010
Inspiring Offices: Office Design That Drives Creativity
Office design has always been linked to productivity—how many workers can be reasonably squeezed into a given space—but why isn’t it more frequently linked to creativity? “In general, I don’t think enough people link the design of space to business outcome,” says Janice Linster, partner with the Minneapolis design firm Studio Hive.
| Aug 11, 2010
Great Solutions: Products
14. Mod Pod A Nod to Flex Biz Designed by the British firm Tate + Hindle, the OfficePOD is a flexible office space that can be installed, well, just about anywhere, indoors or out. The self-contained modular units measure about seven feet square and are designed to serve as dedicated space for employees who work from home or other remote locations.
