Project

The new Imec 6 office building is a major extension of the Imec campus in Leuven.

The project brings together offices, laboratories, meeting rooms and a marketplace within a single compact structure measuring 29,645 m².
Two volumes of 10 and 8 storeys stand on a plinth that blends into the natural relief of the site. A skybridge on level +4 connects the building to the existing campus and promotes interaction between the various parts of imec.

The compact footprint limits the impact on the surrounding nature reserve and preserves the open space of the green heart. The building thus forms a new landmark on the edge of the Voer Valley, carefully attuned to the landscape and the tree line of the park.

In summary:

2 office buildings: 750 and 250 workstations or 12,750 and 4,250 m²
2 laboratories: 2,000 and 1,000 m²
plinth with reception, restaurant, event space and social area with catering
technical room
bicycle parking: 430 bicycles
outdoor landscaping around the building and between the adjacent buildings as a connection to these buildings

The façade as a defining element

The façade largely determines the character of Imec 6.
Two systems come together: an enveloping façade in light blue ceramic panels and transparent interior façades in curtain walls.
The ceramic façade grid subtly anchors the building in its surroundings, while the open glass inner façades emphasise the transparent and connecting character of the design.

The façade was intensively researched and worked out in full detail by us.
Every connection, transition and materialisation was carefully tailored to aesthetics, manufacturability and performance. The combination of ventilated ceramic cladding, integrated sun protection, prefab concrete, lowered exterior ceilings and a complex curtain wall makes the façade a technical masterpiece.

The complexity lies in the way different structures come together: aluminium cladding, prefab concrete, suspended exterior ceilings and a complex curtain wall. What makes this project particularly fascinating is the strong design vision in terms of materials, rhythm and alignment — everything fits together perfectly.

collega Jasper Steenbeke

Structural challenges

The structural challenge of Imec 6 lies in the precision and coherence of the façade construction.

The combination of ceramics, glass and aluminium required careful detailing of connections, dilatations and thermal transitions.
The integration of sun protection into the façade, together with the high requirements in terms of airtightness, wind load and acoustics, required thorough coordination between architecture, stability and technology.

Both the combination of ventilated ceramic façade cladding with high-performance curtain walls and the integrated sun protection, the slim aluminium profiles and the connections to the sky bridges required a thorough structural engineering approach.
We investigated the feasibility and detailing down to the millimetre level — in order to maintain architectural clarity and guarantee the technical requirements.