Orona Ideo HQ

The Orona Ideo complex, the headquarters of the leading elevator and escalator brand in Spain, is located in Hernani (Gipuzkoa, Basque Country) and consists of four separate buildings: Gallery, A3 Research, Fundazioa and Zero.

The project is an answer to the need of common networking space of an international company, creating a place that is both a flagship and a common home for its more than 4,500 employees and a hub for researchers and students on elevation, urban mobility, energy and eco-technology branches.

The most spectacular is this last building, which houses the brand’s corporate services department and part of its R&D department. Its façade consists of more than 2000 triangular ‘pixels’ that are either opaque, translucent or transparent depending on their position, their exposure to the sun’s rays or the use of the interior spaces. The building consists of a 16-meter-high cylinder with a 90-metre external diameter and a southward inclination of 15º, a symbolic evocation of the Orona logo. This inclination has made it possible to optimise the bioclimatic design, turning the roof into a huge solar panel that is completely integrated within the design. Part of the building is raised off the ground, giving access to the Galarreta Technology Park through a central patio with a diameter of 45 meters, in which the entrance to the building is also located.

Transit within the building follows the curve of the central patio. The work areas are laid out on the opposite façade and are both diaphanous and flexible, adaptable to users’ different needs over time. Between the transit areas and the work areas the building has a services cluster containing the stairwells and lifts, bathrooms and offices.

The building has achieved LEED Gold and BREEAM Excellent certifications; the World Green Building Council has selected Orona Zero as a candidate for Health, Wellbeing and Productivity in Offices for its power and heat generating solar roofing – over 1,000 polycrystalline photovoltaic modules are integrated on the inclined rooftop of the building that will have an annual electricity output similar to the electricity consumption of 100 average flats.

Our proposal for this impressive building was the DAFNE model with anti panic writing tablet concealed into the standard. A fully upholstered chair that creates an effect of “upholstered wall” when watched from behind. Perfect alignment, concealed fixing and extraordinary upholstery are the main features of this chair.