After having been derelict for some time, the Amsterdam postzakkengebouw (‘Postal Bags Building’) was recently restored and its attic converted by Ruland + Partner Architecten.

Directly adjacent the famous Central Station of Amsterdam (1881-1889) by the architect Cuypers stands a lesser known but nonetheless interesting building, De Oost. Stemming from 1923 and designed by Jos Kuypers, it originally served as a railway postal office before falling into disrepair. In 2004, the office of Ruland + Partner architecten acquired the tender to convert a portion of first floor and the second in its entirety into the head offices of the Noord-Zuidlijn (the new Amsterdam metro project) along with space for the Dutch Railway company NS. The Attic, the first stage of the multiphase project, completed in 2007, formerly used as storage and fitness space now houses the directorate of NS High Speed. The eastern section of the attic, the eastern stairwell, a portion of the first floor, the ground floor and cellar will follow.

Although an attic might not be the most obvious place readily converted to office space, De Oost proves with that such an arrangement is definitely possible. The monumental roof construction offers restriction and challenge. In order to offer suitable office space, the skylights at the North face of the building were enlarged, resulting in spectacular views over the Ij river. More light is subsequently channelled into the building through the use of a roof light that spans the entire building. The great height beneath the roof was exploited to place an extra level.

In order to conduce a comfortable working atmosphere, new additions are kept visually separate from the original construction and the steel roof trusses are kept visually accessible. The measure of the space is preserved by materializing the partition walls in glass and mounting them asynchronous to the construction. The modern interior is rhythmically segmented through the protrusion of the traditionally riveted trusses.