LANXESS FACADE GERMANY
Scope
Façade Engineering
Year
2018
Type
Industrial
Size
Status
Complete
Location
Cologne, Germany
A façade is where architecture and innovation come together. For LANXESS Energizing Chemistry in Cologne, Germany, Paradigm Design House delivered the façade engineering, creating a high performance architectural envelope that reflects the company's expertise.
Set against the industrial backdrop of the existing production facility, the design reimagines the building's street-facing elevation as a bold, branded threshold between the plant and the public realm. A checkerboard composition of terracotta and charcoal panels animates the façade, breaking down the scale of the structure while framing the entry points with clarity and confidence. Speckled panel finishes add depth and texture, catching light differently by day and by night from the crisp geometry visible in daylight to the striking, illuminated presence the building takes on after dark.
The façade incorporates materials developed from LANXESS' chemical intermediates, additives, specialty chemicals, and modern plastics, resulting in a design that is both durable and contemporary. Functional elements ventilation louvres, ductwork, and access stairs — are integrated into the composition rather than concealed, reinforcing the honest, industrial character of the site while signalling the precision and material innovation at the heart of LANXESS' business.
The result is a façade that performs on multiple levels: protecting and servicing an active industrial building, while giving LANXESS a distinctive, recognizable identity at the scale of the street.
A façade is where architecture and innovation come together. For LANXESS Energizing Chemistry in Cologne, Germany, Paradigm Design House delivered the façade engineering, creating a high performance architectural envelope that reflects the company's expertise.
Set against the industrial backdrop of the existing production facility, the design reimagines the building's street-facing elevation as a bold, branded threshold between the plant and the public realm. A checkerboard composition of terracotta and charcoal panels animates the façade, breaking down the scale of the structure while framing the entry points with clarity and confidence. Speckled panel finishes add depth and texture, catching light differently by day and by night from the crisp geometry visible in daylight to the striking, illuminated presence the building takes on after dark.
The façade incorporates materials developed from LANXESS' chemical intermediates, additives, specialty chemicals, and modern plastics, resulting in a design that is both durable and contemporary. Functional elements ventilation louvres, ductwork, and access stairs — are integrated into the composition rather than concealed, reinforcing the honest, industrial character of the site while signalling the precision and material innovation at the heart of LANXESS' business.
The result is a façade that performs on multiple levels: protecting and servicing an active industrial building, while giving LANXESS a distinctive, recognizable identity at the scale of the street.
(Other works)
