Herzog & de Meuron
Project
2013-

Over the next few years, Helvetia will convert its Basel head office into a Campus by tidying up the spatial and architectural organization of its premises on two plots to the north and south of St. Alban-Anlage. In addition, part of the area will be made accessible to the public. Precise interventions will enhance the visibility of existing urban points of reference.

A new figure will mark the head office of the insurance company: residential housing will be concentrated on the plot to the north, while the plot to the south will be reserved for the company’s distinctive head office. The two sections will be visually linked with the respective green areas. In this way, the original function of St. Alban-Anlage in Basel as a spacious boulevard between the medieval core of the city and its expansion in the 19th century will be revitalized and substantially improved for people enjoying the green boulevard.

The most conspicuous modification on the plot to the south is a new, 12-storey office building as a complement to the existing building of the 1950s, thereby anchoring the latter more clearly as part of Basel‘s urban fabric. This will give Helvetia an unmistakable presence and a built identity. An additional structure placed in between to link the twin buildings will be explicitly identified as the main entrance to the campus. Clearly recognizable and with an open ground plan, the auditorium accommodated in this in-between structure gives the impression of an elevated plaza. The auditorium will be used for Helvetia’s in-house events and will also be available for outside events, thereby giving it a semi-public character. The “Helvetia Boulevard” for in-house use will run parallel to St. Alban-Anlage, connecting the old and new buildings. Both company staff and others can meet here and engage in exchange, enjoying the expansive landscaped areas or the public café on the top floor of the new office building.

In a second phase of development, residential housing will be concentrated on the other side of St. Alban-Anlage to the north. A new building is planned with three types of flats, the largest with 3.5 rooms, as well as guest accommodations for Helvetia staff. The ground floor, with a view of the greenery, will be available for public uses.

Herzog & de Meuron, 2015

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Process

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419_CO_210529_21HDM_HLVT01-1_P0008359p
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Team

Project Team
Stephan Weber (Associate, Project Director, 2022-2023, Project Manager, 2017-2022)
Martin Krapp (Associate, Project Director, 2019-2022)
Linxi Dong (Associate, Project Director, 2015-2019)
Alexander Reichert (Associate, Project Manager, 2013-2017)
Marc Schmidt (Associate, Project Architect, 2017-2021)
María Ángeles Lerín Ruesca (Associate, Project Architect, 2016-2017)
Alexander Stern (Project Architect, 2015-2017)
Roman Aebi (Workshop)
Farhad Ahmad (Design Technologies)
Fernando Alonso
Michal Baurycza (Design Technologies)
Laura-Sophie Behrends
Erasmo Bitetti
Yasemin Ciorabai
Marta Colón de Carvajal Salís
Massimo Corradi (Design Technologies)
Benjamin Engelhardt
Carla Ferrando
Michel Frei
Monica Gaspar Bonilla
Julio Gotor Valcárcel
Sven Grothues
Vasileios Kalisperakis (Design Technologies)
Áron Lőrincz (Design Technologies)
Hadi Madwar
Fabienne Maritz
Clément Thomas Mathieu
Cristina Moldes Andres
Sina Momtaz
Alonso Mortera
Magnus Möschel
Neda Mostafavi
Sorav Partap
Laura Petrache
Valeria Polakovicova
Zaïra Pourier (Workshop)
Nuno Reis Pereira
Noëmi Ruf
Amanda Sachs-Mangold
Eduardo Salgado Mordt
Philipp Schaefle
Kilian Schellenberger
Kai Strehlke (Design Technologies)
Diana-Ionela Toader
Florian Tschacher
Mathew Winter

Facts

Client
Helvetia Schweizerische Lebensversicherungsgesellschaft AG
Planning
Project Architect: Herzog & de Meuron, Basel Ltd., Basel, Switzerland
General Planning: Rapp Architekten AG, Basel, Switzerland
Engineering Coordination: Waldhauser + Hermann AG, Basel, Switzerland
Electrical Engineering: Hefti Hess Martignoni, Aarau, Switzerland
HVA Engineering: Hochtrasser Glaus & Partner Consulting AG, Zürich, Switzerland
Sanitary Engineering: GRP Ingenieure, Rotkreuz, Switzerland
Landscape Design: Vogt Landschaftsarchitekten, Zürich, Switzerland
Structural Engineering: Schnetzer Puskas Ingenieure AG, Basel, Switzerland
Specialist / Consulting
Fire Protection Consulting: Gruner AG, Basel, Switzerland
Acoustic Consulting: Kopitsis Bauphysik AG, Wohlen, Switzerland
Gastronomy Consulting: Planbar AG, Zürich, Switzerland
Gastronomy Consulting: SODA Project & Design GmbH, Fürth, Deutschland
DGNB Label Consulting: CSD Ingenieure AG, Zürich, Switzerland
Security / Door Consulting: Professional Security Design AG, Basel, Switzerland
Light Consulting: Reflexion AG, Zürich, Switzerland
AV Consulting: Intelliconcept AG, Hünenberg Switzerland
Signage Consulting: NEW ID, Basel, Switzerland
Building Physics Consulting: Kopitsis Bauphysik AG, Wohlen, Switzerland
Facade Engineering: Emmer Pfenninger Partner AG, Münchenstein, Switzerland
Links
www.helvetia.com

Location