EUmies Awards 2015

With its triangular shape, Campus Kolding of University of Southern Denmark will create a significant new landmark in Kolding.

As the new learning centre of excellence, Kolding Campus will house the courses in communications, design, culture and languages of the University of Southern Denmark. The building is located on the Grønborg grounds in the centre of Kolding close to the harbour, station and scenic attraction of the river. Kolding Campus will create a new central plaza by Kolding River and will thereby form a close interaction with the other educational institutions of the town, Kolding Design School and International Business College Kolding. The shape and facades of the building create a powerful dialogue between the inner life of the building and the outside observer.

The facade is an integrated part of the building and together, they create a unique and varying expression. Inside in the five floor high atrium, the displaced position of the staircases and access balconies creates a special dynamics where the triangular shape repeats its pattern in a continuous variety of positions up through the different floors. The activities open up towards the town so that the campus plaza and the interior study universe become one interconnected urban space with a green park at the back and a common recreational town plaza at the front.

The building features a number of sustainable initiatives, for instance cooling by means of water from Kolding River, mechanical low-energy ventilation and solar cells. The green areas are tied together in an ecological infrastructure, which will eventually become part of the research park.


An innovative facade

The daylight changes and varies during the course of the day and year. Thus, Kolding Campus is fitted with dynamic solar shading, which adjusts to the specific climate conditions and user patterns and provides optimal daylight and a comfortable indoor climate spaces along the facade.

The solar shading system consists of approx. 1,600 triangular shutters of perforated steel. They are mounted on the facade in a way which allows them to adjust to the changing daylight and desired inflow of light. When the shutters are closed, they lie flat along the facade, while they protrude from the facade when half-open or entirely open and provide the building with a very expressive appearance. The solar shading system is fitted with sensors which continuously measure light and heat levels and regulate the shutters mechanically by means of a small motor.

The perforation of the huge shutters is a light, organic pattern of round holes, which provides a distinctive play in the facade on the outside as well as a dynamic play of light on the inside. The holes in the facade are designed and adapted to an opening angle of approx. 30 %. Engineers and architects have conducted analyses and calculations to establish this as the optimal opening angle in relation to the amount of light and energy let in and out of the building - while at the same time providing users with optimal views to the outside urban space.

In the evening, the light from the inside will pour through the perforated pattern and make the facade appear more transparent. Passers-by or students on their way to or from the university will thus get an immediate sense of the interior activities of the campus. This interaction ensures a strong dialogue between the inner life of the building and the outside spectator.



Project facts

Location: Kolding, Denmark
Client: The Danish University and Property Agency
Gross floor area: 13,700 m2
Year of construction: 2012 - 2014
Type of assignment: First prize in international competition, 2008
Landscape Architect: Kristine Jensens Tegnestue
Engineers: Orbicon