Architect
Building architect: RUM
Interiør architect: AM PM // Mette Faarup Jørgensen and Nic Christiansen Group
Location
Kolding, Denmark
Opening
2024
Solutions
Kvadrat Shade Bouroullec closed cassettes, motorised roller blinds with Clearview textile. Curtains in Air, Ginger, Hero, and Remix flow, and Soft Cells in Mi Casa.
The Nic. Christiansen Group (NCG) has constructed a new headquarters in Kolding, Denmark, featuring advanced window covering solutions from Kvadrat Shade, along with Kvadrat Soft Cells and Kvadrat curtains. These solutions will ensure a cohesive and functional workspace. This new building replaces the iconic white structure on Sjællandsvej, which has housed the company’s main office since 1976. NCG is committed to sustainability and modern work environments. The project prioritises efficiency, comfort, and aesthetics, reflecting the company’s focus on employee well-being and supporting its ongoing growth.
“It was important to us that the NCG building was a comfortable workplace. Not a traditional office building with a lot of employees, but a building where you can find ‘private areas’ for one or many. That there was an emphasis on the innovative workplace and community.” Mette Faarup Jørgensen, AM PM
Functional challenges and technical innovations
A key feature of this project is the incorporation of 142 Kvadrat Shade Closed Cassettes. Each cassette contains three coupled blinds powered by Somfy Sonesse 40 RS485 motors. The roller blinds span widths of up to 4.5 metres, offering a seamless and uniform appearance across the entire façade.
The advanced motor technology ensures precise blind alignment across the building's façade, enhancing its architectural expression while maintaining practical functionality. An intelligent automation and control system integrates weather data and sun tracking to optimise indoor comfort, reduce glare, and minimise heat gain. Kvadrat Shade Clearview textile provides superior control over thermal comfort while reducing the need for cooling and heating systems and the associated energy consumption.
“It was a long process where many technical solutions had to be considered. The result has turned out really well” Mette Faarup Jørgensen, AM PM
The blinds are seamlessly integrated into the building management system, enabling interaction with lighting and HVAC for superior energy efficiency and indoor climate control. The blinds are recessed into the window frames with custom L-shaped profiles that conceal wiring and other components, maintaining the building's streamlined design.
Innovative integration for comfort and sustainability
The Clearview metallised textile used in the blinds plays a key role in supporting NCG's sustainability and comfort goals by providing effective solutions for glare reduction, solar heat gain management, and daylight optimisation. The innovative Clearview textile is designed to enhance energy efficiency in buildings, by reducing glare and managing the amount of sunlight that enters the space, thereby helping to maintain a comfortable indoor environment while minimising the need for artificial lighting and cooling, promoting long-term energy savings.
The NCG headquarters is an excellent example of how functional design and advanced technology can enhance the visual and operational aspects of a modern office building. This project demonstrates Kvadrat Shade's innovative solutions, which help architects and designers to push boundaries and achieve their vision.
Aesthetic and acoustic enhancements
Kvadrat Soft Cells are the obvious choice for acoustic solutions and architectural statements in the atrium. The Soft Cells use Mi Casa textile and include a special design where endcaps meet at a precise 45-degree outside angle, reflecting the attention to detail in this project.
“The very large atrium needed to find the right solution in terms of acoustics and still retain a clean, raw look from the concrete and the interaction with the large staircase. Here we chose Kvadrat Soft Cell” Mette Faarup Jørgensen, AM PM
Curtains from Kvadrat Remix Flow, Air 4, Ginger, and textiles add a tactile and dynamic quality to the space, while also contributing to solar control and atmosphere enhancement.