Architects: Batlleiroig
Area: 63.184 m²
Country: Spain, Arteixo
Year: 2021
Photographs: Luis Díaz Díaz
Text description and images are provided by the architects.
The Zara.com Offices in Arteixo building adds 63.184 m² to the Inditex complex with a new volume that provides a sober image characterized by verticality. The configuration of their workspaces generates the necessary flexibility for the firm, thanks to large free heights that obtain a better environmental quality and spacious rest areas, with views and natural light. A highly efficient building that achieves LEED Platinum sustainability certification.
The new Inditex expansion follows the strategy of the recent growth of the complex based on independent volumes that develop and incorporate outdoor spaces for people with the presence of vegetation, generating healthy environments that in turn allow the different buildings to be provided with better lighting conditions natural and ventilation.
The connection with the new building is generated through a new walkway that completes a large internal connection axis and will allow access to the new building in an accessible and very intuitive way, following the logic of the previous phases.
The new building consists of 5 floors of 90×90 m, which are organized into two large free-height work spaces complemented by support and service spaces located on one side and in the center of the plant. This configuration allows generating the necessary flexibility to adapt to different present and future needs of the company.
The façade system solves, by means of large 4.8-meter high high-efficiency glass modules, the interior lighting of the workspaces and incorporates the structural pillars in the space between modules, freeing the interior spaces from pillars close to the façade. and increasing the sensation of space and natural light. Incorporating the mass of the pillars into the outer skin improves the building’s thermal insulation and reduces its energy demand.
By finishing the façade and the roof in light colors, the building manages to capture less heat by limiting the increase in ambient temperature due to the heating of the buildings, also known as the “cool island” effect.
The repetition of the window modules generates a sober and elegant exterior image of the building characterized by verticality. The commitment to the white color gives depth, contrast and luminosity to the building.
The headquarters for Zara.com was designed from the first phases of the project following passive strategies that reduced the energy demand of the building.
The roof of the building displays a 1,088 m² photovoltaic pergola that generates 263.1 MWh/year and in turn protects the roof from solar incidence. The contribution of this pergola and the one that covers the outdoor car park provides energy to 30,000 m² of the new building, providing 45% of the energy it consumes.
The building’s energy efficiency is completed with a wide repertoire of technical solutions, among which its centralized management system and motorization in the building stand out, together with low-consumption LED lighting, induction-based air conditioning system with very low air speeds. and therefore with low energy consumption or a highly efficient waste management system.
On the other hand, the building reuses the rainwater from its roofs, obtaining a 0 balance of water consumption. The use of recycled and industrialized materials, such as the precast structural system, contribute to the reduction of the carbon footprint. All this will allow the building to obtain the LEED Platinum Sustainability Certification.
For a better internal connection, the five floors are connected by wide staircases, promoting healthy mobility within the building.
The main staircase develops from a large 32-meter-high vertical atrium flooded with natural light. The fact of generating comfortable stairs, with natural light and placing them in visible spaces encourages their use and therefore the well-being of people, reducing the use of elevators and their corresponding energy consumption.
The great interior free heights of up to 6 meters high on some floors allow a lower concentration of people per m3. This fact, together with air renewal systems that filter harmful particles, guarantees a high quality of indoor air in a very low-density environment.
All the new outdoor spaces have been pacified to allow them to be used and enjoyed by people, contributing to de-densification and the generation of alternative environments for meeting, gathering and rest. In addition, each of the floors has spacious cafeteria and rest areas with large windows.
A new forest with 350 trees on a large vegetation cover of 23,000 m2 increases air quality and promotes the infiltration of rainwater into the existing land. This large green area makes it possible to offset a large part of the CO2 footprint of the construction of the new buildings, improve air quality and have outdoor areas for sports.
The creation of a new car park for 638 vehicles has also made it possible to create a new access from Avenida de Arteixo, which makes it possible to decongest road traffic to the complex at rush hour. In addition, a large pergola with 6,000 m2 of photovoltaic panels covers the parking lot, providing shade for the space and producing electricity.
In a bid to improve the relationship with the contexts near the complex and its closest population, a new bike lane will be developed that will connect the complex with the existing bike lane, which runs parallel to the natural system of the Arteixo River and connects with the natural areas of the Atlantic coast.
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