Wiegerinck and Arup developed a new teaching and research building for the Agrotechnology & Food Sciences Group (AFSG) of Wageningen UR (University & Research center). The building houses the eight different AFSG chair groups.
Completed as part of the De Born master plan for the university campus, the new building includes spaces for research and training, primarily in the shape of laboratories and (office) work areas. The building is connected to the nearby ‘Restaurant van de Toekomst’ and the ‘Impulse’ meeting point.
The building commission includes the keywords functionality, flexibility, concentration and synergy. The desired appearance should combine innovative strength with common sense.
The new building takes its name ‘Helix’ from the DNA structure of protein. The building design reproduces the helix shape with four high atriums twisting around a central core. These atriums include formal and informal meeting spaces, creating an interesting spatial system that invites movement.
