Glass and COR-TEN steel accentuate industrial character

For some years now, systematic development has been underway at Amsterdam’s former wood harbour. Numerous office and commercial buildings have been built within the scope of the project. One of them, Danzigerkade 207, has an unusual, eye-catching façade constructed from glass and COR-TEN steel. The complex glazing, which includes rounded corners and floating windows, was achieved using SCHOLLGLAS GEWE-therm® insulated glass with sun protection.

In recent years a series of office buildings, generally characterized by robust façades constructed from concrete and wood, have been built at Amsterdam’s Minervahaven docks. Amsterdam-based architects ZZDP Architecten’s design is very different. Danzigerkade 207, an approximately 5 000 square metre office and commercial building, surprises the viewer with floor-to-ceiling glazing with rounded corners and projecting wrap-around COR-TEN steel façade strips.

The unusual combination of materials is an elegant nod to the industrial character of the former wood harbour’s infrastructure and the ships which once docked there. The projecting surfaces directly adjacent to the building’s façade serve as areas for green plants; its west and east sides have external spaces varying from Juliet balconies to a large patio. Together with three other buildings Danzigerkade 207’s south side has been used to create a small open courtyard to break up the Minervahaven district’s high construction density, while the area’s largest car parking facility is located under the building.

Curved glass on the corners

The company responsible for constructing the façade, Aluverre Gevelbouw B.V., Hardinxveld, describes the eye-catching exterior shell as a characteristic aluminium façade which references the industrial history of Amsterdam’s Houthaven district.

The façade, which has an area of some 2 900 square metres, is primarily constructed from glass and aluminium window elements. A team from SCHOLLGLAS provided technical advice during the development process for the insulated glass and when selecting the sun protection glazing.

In addition to this, the team also calculated the glass structures and thicknesses required. The final version was constructed using GEWE-therm® sun with Sunguard SNX60/28 and SNX60/28 HT as double-layer insulating glass in various combinations of float, laminated, tempered and annealed glass while cylindrically curved double-layer insulating glass comprised of float and laminated glass in combination with highly selective Sunguard SNX60/28 HT sun protection glass was used on the building’s corners. The Ug value is 1.0 W/m2K.

In collaboration with glass supplier SCHOLLGLAS, an opening for a single-pane “floating” window was created in the centre of each floor-to-ceiling safety glass element. This allows the building’s users to ventilate the interior by opening windows. The design, which includes varying balcony widths and highly curved panes of glass on the corners, was extremely demanding and required precise manufacturing and installation of the glass panes since the building’s construction design did not permit any tolerances.

The Danzigerkade 207 building is an unconventional landmark which provides its occupants with an impressive view across Amsterdam’s port area from their desks.