PROJECT DETAILS
When speaking of technology, we tend to see it as some sort of savior for the future. Today, technology can’t be discussed without including green transition. In Helsingborg, Skanska has built a 11 000 square meter office building that merges European architecture with green energy. The “Prisma” project, with its 592 unique unitized glass facades, is located in the Harbor of Helsingborg, Sweden. The building is a part of a new extension of the city- designed to develop the old harbor and industrial land into a new district. “The most unique part with Prisma is without a doubt the façade, and the design of the façade and the large glass sections. The location is also unique, Prisma is an iconic building in the new part of the city”, says Christian Westerberg, Project Manager at Wihlborgs.
Erik Giudice Architects designed the building with dazzling glass façades with consideration of the mile way views towards Denmark. The glazing sections create reflections from both the sea and the sky, establishing a spacious atmosphere, and the clear exterior let beam of lights shine through all the way into the core of the building. “The challenges with this project was to get all the details lined up based on the large façade sections with transparent glass from floor to ceiling. Another challenge was also logistics due to all the staff working at the site with a one and only exit that was also a one and only entrance”, says Christian Westerberg, Project Manager at Wihlborgs. Received An Award Through Clear Environmental Focus The building has received the green certification “Miljöbyggnad Guld”, and its brilliant structure is combined with an energy efficient façade solution with a clear look. The glass adjusts to the climate, meaning isolating cold or heat depending on weather, but does at the same time maximize the light which creates a harmonic inside climate. To reduce our carbon footprint, the high-tech building is covered in 35 different species of plants, which is effectively trapping carbon dioxide. The building will also have solar panels that will supply the building with electricity and operate the buildings conditioning system. The kitchens waste grinders will transform food leftover into biogas. “The advantage with using aluminium is that the material is so strong and has a low weight, in other words, aluminium has a low density compared to steal. Other advantages are that alumuminium does not rust, and it’s easy to form”, says Christian Westerberg, Project Manager at Wihlborgs. Prisma is flirting with our European architectural heritance, at the same time as it is a modern example of a green building. The vision for Prisma is to become one of Europe’s most inventive tech cities.
