Headquarters of Germanischer Lloyd (GL) Brooktorkai

The new headquarters of the international ship classification company Germanischer Lloyd (GL) have been built in the historic Hamburg harbor area of the "Speicherstadt". In the immediate context of the large scale red-brick facades of the wharves gmp architects designed an equally strong urban figure: a meander of solid-looking brick rendered buildings with an all glass tower at the end as a beacon.

The 120 m long, monolithic and seven storey tall meander is structured by an irregular pattern of windows at a 1.35 m grid. The irregularity is introduced with the help of so-called "city-windows" - large, full-storey high, fully glazed incisions in the rendered brick facade. Because of the transparent ground floor the entire monolithic building seems to float, so that the building gives the impression of massiveness and lightness at the same time. The delicate "crystalline" tower with its all glass double-facade, altogether four storeys taller than the meander, is set as a deliberate design counterpoint.

From the inside of the building multiple views of the quays of Brooktorfleet and from the casino on the ground floor with its outdoor terrace provide a pleasant atmosphere. These qualities of the interior are even further heightened by the openness and transparency of the atrium with its inner facade, all executed in glass.