PROJECT REPORT: ADAPTIVE REUSE 49
Arkitekter, whom they had worked with previously on projects which placed a strong focus on sustainability. But rather than simply taking over, White wanted to reassess the entire plan. “What attracted us to the project was the opportunity to challenge the assumption that demolition was the only viable option,” explains Anders Tväråna, lead architect on the project. “We were excited by the challenge of transforming those perceived weaknesses into strengths,” he continues. Tväråna says that there were “many reasons” why architects and developers who had previously studied the buildings had ruled out the possibility of adapting it for several tenant bodies, and modern requirements. “Being built bespoke for one large tenant, it was diffi cult to create spaces that would work for smaller tenants with individual entrances and fi re escapes.” Low ceiling heights, small windows resulting in low daylight levels and poor insulation made it “outdated,” and its low density – four storeys – was viewed as an ineffi cient use of the site. It also had no real contact with the street. “Potentially there was an opinion that it is more ‘fun’ to create new buildings weighed into the decision, too,” adds Tväråna. The architects’ previous work and existing relationship with Vasakronan helped when it came to rethinking the plan for the development. “It gave us a
strong foundation for pushing innovative construction approaches,” Tväråna says. They had worked together on Magasin X – Sweden’s largest fully timber offi ce building, which had given them a “confi dence” to pursue ambitious sustainability goals. “What was different here,” Tväråna adds, was the scale of the transformation and reuse. Rather than creating a new building, we were focused on extending the life of an existing one,” he adds.
A rescue plan The fi nal brief was that the development was to include offi ce and retail space, laboratories, restaurants and cafes, “creating a much more active and adaptable building,” Tväråna says. The original brief was “quite simple” – to propose a development that maximises the building on the site while retaining the original structure.
“Our task was to determine whether the structure could be retained and adapted to modern requirements while remaining commercially viable,” he continues. Upon examining the complex closer, the practice, alongside client Vasakronan found that the foundations and concrete structure were in a good enough condition to reuse. However while the existing foundation was in good condition, it wasn’t able to carry any additional weight – a problem for the team given their vision included the
LIGHTENING THE LOAD
The original load-bearing concrete facade was replaced with a lighter structural system, and three new fl oors were constructed in lightweight steel and CLT CGI © White Arkitekter
ADF OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2026
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