On the Bayer campus in Berlin, the new Berlin Center for Gene and Cell Therapies to be operated jointly by Bayer AG and Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin will provide a working environment for up to 900 people.
Designed as a start-up incubator with production facilities, this translational center will create a biotech ecosystem for novel treatment options using gene and cell therapies.
At the center, researchers will be working to develop new medicines that can be made available more quickly to patients. The translational center combines research, development, and production of gene and cell therapies at the heart of the German capital.
Geared towards interdisciplinary ways of working and tasks, it will put people in the focus while making the research topics being investigated tangible to the surrounding community. The new build’s transparent design embodies the concept of “Science on Display.” Situated at Nordhafen, the southernmost part of the campus, the building engages in a direct dialogue with the city, the adjacent park, and the Bayer campus.
Its cubic volume relates to its urban surroundings and the Bayer campus through the horizontally structured façade. Its transparent glazed base allows the building to interlock with the surrounding greenery.
A projection towards the riverside promenade creates a weather-protected area that also provides space for a café. From this point, visitors enjoy views of the state-of-the-art technology and workflows in the second-floor laboratory area. The modern research world of the translational center unfolds on the upper levels.
A modular grid and the building’s simple basic shape allow for layouts adaptable to flexible uses that can be interconnected by shared areas extending across two stories. Folded façade elements lend an abstract, transparent appearance to the building while integrating functional equipment. Depending on the orientation of the building, different projections and angles are created, which help to optimize sun shading. Integrated photovoltaic panels harness solar energy.
Toward the embankment, the façade expands into balconies that provide a lounge area for researchers with a view across Nordhafen. Surrounded by a riverside park with access to the water, the Berlin Center for Gene and Cell Therapies interweaves science, nature, and the city to create an inviting place with a distinct identity that is open to employees and visitors alike. Source by HENN.
- Location: Berlin, Germany
- Architect: HENN
- Partners in charge: Marcus Fißan, Martin Henn
- Disegn Team: Christoph Goeke, Marcin Kropidlo, Armin Nemati, Ceren Pehlivan, Ammar Teibi, Barbara van Waarden, Yi Yao
- Landscape architecture: SINAI
- Structural Engineer, Building Physics, Façade Planning: Bollinger & Grohmann
- MEP, Building Services: KLETT
- Fire Protection: HHP-NO
- Laboratory Planning: Eurolabors,
- Clean Room Planning: Ottolse
- Project controlling: SMV
- Users: Bayer AG, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin
- Client: IQ spaces
- Site area: 4,400 m2
- Gross floor area: 18,000 m2
- Competition: 2024 (1st prize)
- Images: Courtesy of HENN