Linde Coslada

Industrial Chic

Industrial projects typically present a double challenge. On the one hand, the project should meet the functional requirements of the company, maximising returns on economic investment and without detracting from the project aesthetically. On the other hand, is the problem of attending to smaller details which can result in losing sight of the greater plan.

In this project, the client, a producer of elevator trucks on the periphery of Madrid required the enlargement of a building, warehouse, workshop and loading dock. The situation of the company, on the corner of two main roads in the Coslada Industrial Estate, offered the opportunity of erecting a public façade within view of an important thoroughfare, which would serve both as attractive publicity for the company as well as the optimisation of the existing facilities.

At the initiation of the project the buildings were grouped in three clusters; a main premises of exposed brickwork where offices and workshops were housed, and two triangular blocks of offices. The former was left unaltered whilst the latter was demolished and replaced with two new wings. The new offices and workshop appear as two reflective blocks with an elegant aluminium and glass finish, which emphasises the brand image.

The centrepieces of the project are: horizontally, the connection between the first floor offices and the workshop; vertically, a stairwell which connects different platforms and provides access for staff. The structure of greater size is one of two floors which takes advantage of the natural slope of the land to provide a loading dock with direct access to the workshop and an area for sale of spare parts on the lower floor.

The two apparently blind buildings which face the Ave. San Pedro conceal the office and workshop windows behind a facade of micro-perforated metal sheeting. The north entrance to the site is via a curtain wall, which forms the main facade, and is accessed from a roundabout, one of the main points of entry to the Coslada Estate.

• Type : Industrial & Logistics
• Date : 2004
• Location : Madrid
• Promoter : Linde Carretillas e Hidráulica, S.A.
• Size : 5.680 m²
• Budget : 1.360.000 €
• Photographs : Chiara Pranzo