Copenhagen Towers: Giant office building is home to a sustainable greenhouse

Denmark’s largest office building houses innovative, sustainable solutions and a spectacular entrance area open to the public

Copenhagen Towers is a great Swiss Army knife for the business community. It’s an all-in-one solution comprising office spaces, meeting facilities, restaurants, shops, wellness areas and a large four-star hotel, all conveniently situated in Ørestad near freeway exit 19, the metro, the train and just five minutes from Copenhagen Airport.

Copenhagen Towers is unmistakably characterized by its dual towers, which are home to the hotel and offices. The hotel was designed by Danish architectural firm Dissing+Weitling, while London-based Foster + Partners designed the office tower and the atrium connecting the two towers, which also serves as the main entrance to the complex.

The sustainability-packed atrium is open to the public

When you step into the atrium from Ørestad Boulevard, the juxtaposition of Ørestad’s SimCity-feel and the greenhouse atmosphere is quite surprising. This is thanks in great part to Lendager Group and their focus on sustainability. Danish architectural firm Lendager Group collaborated with Foster + Partners to elevate the recycling of materials in Copenhagen Tower II to new heights. Inside the atrium, the eyes naturally gravitate toward the living trees and upward to the vaulted glass ceiling. But the concrete floor is also noteworthy. It is made from 62.5% upcycled waste concrete. With a total of 1,000 m2 of concrete flooring, this accounts for a significant reduction in carbon footprint.  The unique pattern created by the upcycled concrete also gives the space a raw essence in the midst of all the greenery.

Several walls in the atrium are clad in wood. It’s not immediately apparent, but the wood paneling is actually upcycled as well. If you walk toward the elevator, you can just make out the contours of the past life of the panels used in the building. The upcycled paneling is comprised of waste wood from, among other things, old window frames sourced from construction sites around Denmark. Many of the ceiling panels in the building are made from upcycled bottles in PET plastic. And at the back of the atrium, you can catch a glimpse of the bright orangish-yellow and blue colors of decommissioned sails from racing yachts reused to hide the stairwells.

3rd generation office building and global business center

The developers, Sjælsø Gruppen, call the project a 3rd generation office building and a global business center. Underlying these somewhat cryptic terms is an ambition to create a working environment with a very high level of service. For employees, this means access to a dentist, doctor, online shopping delivered to your car in the parking garage, in-house lectures and courses, personal payment card for use in the restaurants and cafés, a gym and other amenities to make daily life easier.

Facts:

• Copenhagen Towers is home to roughly 5,000 workplaces, making it the largest collection of offices in one place in Denmark. 
• Insider tip: It is possible to take guided tours of the building and visit the 20th floor. Copenhagen Towers offers an impressive view of the city.
• More sustainable buildings and upcycle solutions await just a hundred meters from Copenhagen Towers, where you can visit Lendager Group’s Resource Townhouses and Upcycle Studios.