European Headquarters for Olympus

The new European headquarters premises for Olympus also hosts the new work company Design Offices. Olympus will focus primarily on medical technology. Design Offices will operate co-working facilities as well as a café, making both functions accessible to the public on the first floor. The Olympus staff restaurant is also located there. The urban area of City Süd, which was previously designated an industrial and commercial area, is developing into a dense mixed-use zone with more distinct urban design features. With its brick facades, typical of this Hanseatic city, the new campus creates succinct urban spaces at Heidenkampsweg and the adjacent streets. The new development occupies an entire urban block that was previously occupied by a fairly random mixture of commercial units. Eleven-story blocks line Heidenkampsweg and Wendenstrasse whereas the buildings along Sachsenstrasse have seven stories. The block development creates four landscaped inner courtyards.

The main entrances of the headquarters lead to a large foyer that—in the form of a roofed atrium—provides access to the campus. An open staircase leads to the training and conference center floor. The depth of the functional units lends itself to a triple-loaded layout with offices in the outer zones and a middle zone for special functions. The campus architecture is based on emission-free materials and has achieved DGNB Gold certification as a low-energy building.