Leopold Tower // Belgium

Leopold Tower

11 december 2020

Leopold's lantern

It is not easy to find a happy medium in Brussels. High or low, massive or filigree, buildings blend like a patchwork into a colourful urban sprawl from which prefabricated concrete skyscrapers protrude here and there. They are a relic of post-war Modernism, a time when Brussels, like many other cities, demolished large swathes of old buildings in its attempts to create a car-friendly city. Today, nobody wants to live in these old, uneconomical concrete monsters anymore. A concrete tower block in Brussels-Evere provides an example of how to deal with this unloved architecture in an ecological manner. The architects stripped the brown building back to its concrete structure and the stairwells. They used the narrow area to create different-sized living spaces on both sides of the building, with functional and flexible floor plans. But the crux is the multi-layered building envelope: a highly insulated wooden façade encases the building and a second layer of sun protection panels is installed leaving a gap of approximately 1.5 m between the two. This creates passive protection against overheating in the living spaces, screens to provide privacy on the lower floors and wind screens for the upper floors. In addition, there are wraparound balconies on each floor with open and sheltered seating areas. The new façade plays not only an essential role in the quality of life in the flats and comfort when using the balconies but also in the building’s new image. The layering of the envelope creates a transparent complexity and interesting details. These features mutate depending on the design of the balconies and the changing pattern of light and shadow cast by the outer shell onto the interior throughout the day. The building which once was quite massive and hideous has been scaled down to homely proportions and heavy, bulky structures look lightweight. This is also advantageous for the small-scale mixed neighbourhood. The facilities for the residents include the sun terrace on the top floor and an event room on the ground floor, the crèche, the bicycle repair shop and a garden. And at night, when the light from the living rooms shines through the façade to the outside world, the building shines like an oversized lantern into the city.

Project: Leopold Tower, Brussels | Belgium
Architect: architectesassoc+, Brussels | Belgium
Fabricator: Bouwpunt Van der Gucht, Temse | Belgium
Installer: Wall & Roof Construct, Zele | Belgium
Year of Construction: 2018
Product: ALUCOBOND® PLUS solid colours | White 16
Photos: mvl mediagroep

Trefwoorden

aluminium building 3a composites architecture panel acm composite facade design alucobond sheet

ALUCOBOND®

Download brochures (3)Neem contact op

Staat van realisatie Voltooid

Start bouw 2018

Ingebruikname 2018

Meewerkende partijen

Architectarchitectesassoc+ConstructeurBouwpunt Van der GuchtFotograafmvl mediagroep

Leveranciers

OverigALUCOBOND®

Download brochures

ALUCOBOND Façade Fascination

Brochure

ALUCOBOND solid & metallic colours

Brochure

ALUCOBOND® At a glance

Brochure

Stel jezelf kort voor! Dan weet het betreffende bedrijf wie hun brochure gedownload heeft.

Wil je niet bij elke download jouw gegevens in hoeven voeren?
Klik dan hier om in te loggen. Heb je nog geen account? Maak dan hier een gratis account aan.

Voornaam

Achternaam

E-mailadres

Downloaden

Wanneer je brochures downloadt op Architectenweb.nl worden relevante gegevens van jou – zoals jouw naam en e-mailadres – met het betreffende bedrijf gedeeld. Meer hierover lees je in ons privacybeleid.

Frank Allart Schuifdeurtrekringen

Brochure

Stel jezelf kort voor! Dan weet het betreffende bedrijf wie hun model gedownload heeft.

Wil je niet bij elke download jouw gegevens in hoeven voeren?
Klik dan hier om in te loggen. Heb je nog geen account? Maak dan hier een gratis account aan.

Voornaam

Achternaam

E-mailadres

Downloaden

Wanneer je modellen downloadt op Architectenweb.nl worden relevante gegevens van jou – zoals jouw naam en e-mailadres – met het betreffende bedrijf gedeeld. Meer hierover lees je in ons privacybeleid.

Neem contact op met ALUCOBOND®

Je bent momenteel niet ingelogd. Hierdoor is het alleen mogelijk om meer informatie per e-mail op te vragen. Wil je liever gebeld worden of documentatie per post ontvangen? Klik dan hier om in te loggen.
Heb je nog geen account? Maak dan hier een gratis account aan.

Voornaam

Achternaam

E-mailadres

Opmerkingen