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Front elevation view of concrete maritime academy in Denmark by EFFEKT and CF Moller Architects
CategoriesArchitecture

Concrete grid defines Svendborg International Maritime Academy

By Zarkon Group,
Front elevation view of concrete maritime academy in Denmark by EFFEKT and CF Moller Architects

Danish studios EFFEKT and CF Møller Architects have completed the Svendborg International Maritime Academy in Denmark, using an exposed concrete frame to echo its industrial surrounds.

Overlooking the harbour in the North Quay of the former port city Svendborg, the 12,500-square-metre centre unites several previously separate departments of Svendborg International Maritime Academy (SIMAC), providing combined study spaces for 1,000 students.

Front elevation view of concrete maritime academy in Denmark by EFFEKT and CF Moller ArchitectsFront elevation view of concrete maritime academy in Denmark by EFFEKT and CF Moller Architects
EFFEKT and CF Møller Architects have created a building for Svendborg International Maritime Academy

EFFEKT and CF Møller Architects designed a “resilient grid” for the building formed of prefabricated concrete elements, which nods to the surrounding architecture and is divided with glass partitions to create teaching spaces that can be easily modified or adapted in future.

“We set out with the desire to create an extremely raw and transparent grid structure, contextually adapted to its industrious setting while capable of staging the school’s workshop-based content,” explained CF Møller Architects partner Mads Mandrup.

Facade dusk view of concrete maritime academy in Denmark by EFFEKT and CF Moller ArchitectsFacade dusk view of concrete maritime academy in Denmark by EFFEKT and CF Moller Architects
It is characterised by an exposed concrete grid

“[It is] a scaffolding of spatial possibilities, centred around encouraging young people to encounter and exchange ideas through informal meetings, both within and out towards its surroundings, activating the whole harbour front of Svendborg,” Mandrup added.

SIMAC’s teaching spaces are organised across five storeys around a central 20-metre-high atrium. Lined with balconies, this atrium visually connects each level to a communal seating area on the ground floor.

Internal frame of concrete maritime academy in Denmark by EFFEKT and CF Moller ArchitectsInternal frame of concrete maritime academy in Denmark by EFFEKT and CF Moller Architects
Five storeys of educational facilities surround a 20-metre-high atrium

Double-height spaces house specialist workshops alongside conventional offices and classrooms, with the glass partitions intended to “stimulate communication and informal exchange” between areas, said the studios.

On the roof is a communal terrace for students and staff, providing both internal and external spaces with expansive views out across the harbour framed by the hollow concrete grid.

Taking cues from the raw concrete structure, interior finishes have been kept minimal and unfinished, with exposed ducting and steel balustrades. Social areas are visually softened by wooden details, including an area of tiered seating.

On the building’s exterior, panels of glazing and corrugated metal have been pulled back to express the concrete structure. In each corner, the grid is cut away to create sheltered external areas for the cafe and canteen, which are open to the public.

Stairs and frame of concrete maritime academy in Denmark by EFFEKT and CF Moller ArchitectsStairs and frame of concrete maritime academy in Denmark by EFFEKT and CF Moller Architects
An area of tiered communal seating is among those with wooden detailing

“You see the same raw, minimalist exposed column-girder structure both from the outside and the inside,” said EFFEKT co-founder Sinus Lynge.

“The space essentially flows through the building’s structure, and the intriguing aspect concerning the concrete elements is that SIMAC’s structure is the architecture,” he added.

Education space in concrete maritime academy in Denmark by EFFEKT and CF Moller ArchitectsEducation space in concrete maritime academy in Denmark by EFFEKT and CF Moller Architects
Exposed ducting contributes to the raw interior aesthetic

SIMAC is the first project to be completed as part of a wider masterplan for a new district in Svendborg, which is set to transform 5.5 hectares of industrial area with new education, business and residential buildings.

Elsewhere, EFFEKT also recently completed Denmark’s first treetop walkway at the Hamaren Activity Park in Fyresdal and CF Møller Architects created the headquarters for Lego in Billund with a bright yellow atrium.

The photography is by Rasmus Hjortshøj.

Reference

Norway's first treetop walkway
CategoriesArchitecture

EFFEKT creates treetop walkway accessible to “all nature lovers”

By Zarkon Group,
Norway's first treetop walkway

Architecture studio EFFEKT has completed Norway’s first treetop walkway, which winds up through Hamaren Activity Park in Fyresdal and ends at a circular viewpoint.

Raised 15 metres high in the air, the platform was designed with a gentle incline accessible to people of all ages and physical abilities, as well as cyclists, pushchairs and wheelchairs.

Norway's first treetop walkway
EFFEKT has completed Norway’s first treetop walkway

“The treetop walk in Hamaren Activity Park offers all nature lovers, regardless of age, disability or physical limitation, a new perspective on the natural landscape of Fyresdal,” said Danish studio EFFEKT.

“It grew out of a heartfelt desire to give all people, regardless of physical abilities, the sensational feeling of walking amongst the treetops.”

Aerial view of Hamaren Activity Park in Norway
It winds up through Hamaren Activity Park in Fyresdal

Hamaren Activity Park opened in Fyresdal in 2017. Alongside the new treetop walk, it has cycling and nature trails, and facilities for activities including trampolining and climbing.

The treetop walkway is one kilometre in length and is placed along the ascent of Klokkarhamaren – a hill with an elevation of 338 metres.

Aerial view of Hamaren Activity Park treetop walkway by EFFEKT
It is built from pinewood

Visitors to the walkway are guided from the pine forest floor, along past a lake and up between the treetops to the summit of Klokkarhamaren.

At the end of the trail, EFFEKT has incorporated a circular viewpoint that measures 50 metres in diameter and provides a panoramic view of the natural landscape surrounding it.

Aerial view of Hamaren Activity Park treetop walkway by EFFEKT
It ends at a circular viewpoint

“Reconnecting with nature is an important part of the great change we are undergoing now,” studio co-founder Tue Foged told Dezeen.

“Although being a small gesture in the bigger picture, we hope that granting people free and universal access to experience the sublime nature of this site, can serve as an example for others.”

Walkway through pine forest
The walkway weaves through a pine forest

The structure is two metres wide throughout most of its length but widens into balconies at certain points to spotlight specific views or provide rest areas. It is raised on pillars that align with “the natural curves and gradients of the terrain”.

Its boardwalk-like appearance was made from locally sourced pinewood, chosen to blend in with the surroundings.

“It uses only small and straight prefabricated elements that can easily be handled with small machinery and by hand on-site to protect nature during the building process,” explained Foged.

“When joined together the segments form an organic shape that bends around the trees and along the mountain,” he said.

“The structure literally blends in with existing trees on the mounting, sometimes giving the visual impression that the boardwalk levitates through the forest.”

Hamaren Activity Park treetop walkway
It is designed to blend with its surroundings

This structure was developed by EFFEKT in collaboration with local contractor Inge Aamlid.

According to the team, this was to ensure the design also nodded to the area’s history of pinewood construction by using local craftsmanship techniques.

Treetop walkway by EFFEKT
It begins at the forest floor

“The region has a long history with logging and tradition of building with pinewood structures,” said Foged.

“The premise of the design was, therefore, to use the local predominant material of the pine tree. Pinewood is used as the loadbearing structure as well as the boardwalk and railing,” he explained.

Wooden walkway
It follows the ascent of Klokkarhamaren

Based in Copenhagen, EFFEKT is an architecture studio founded by architects Sinus Lynge and Foged in 2007.

Other projects by the studio include Camp Adventure, a spiralling tower in the midst of a forest, and the transformation of an abandoned windmill factory into a skatepark and youth centre.

The photography is by Rasmus Hjortshøj.

Reference