Type
research, administration, education, conference

Source
open international competition

Client
Cluster Sport International, University of Lausanne

Address/Site
Lausanne, Switzerland

Site area
6.037 m2

Building area
5.667 m2

Program
offices, classrooms, seminar rooms, cafeteria, research laboratories, auditorium

Structure
concrete, steelwork

Cladding
glazing, fibre glass

Architect
SADAR+VUGA (Jurij Sadar, Boštjan Vuga, Peter Sovinc, Andreas Cesarini, Gregor Turnšek, Janž Omerzu)
QUARTAL (Patrick Defago, Samuel Bigger)

New Cluster Sport International building is based on following starting points:
1. To create a building which along with surrounding outdoor areas indicates a gateway to the University of Lausanne,
2. To develop a building of educational/research/conference environment related to sports institutions aiming to interact with the public; it is a permeable institution, a hybrid between a representative public space and a school environment, a cluster which affiliates different sports education institutions,
3. To provide a sustainable working and living environment with a high level of well being and comfort.

The Cluster consists of eight stacked bars along a central stripe. The bars are slightly curved, allowing each end of the building to perpendicularly relate to both the alleyway on the western part of the site and to the stream on the eastern site. The slope of the green esplanade separates the Cluster from the main road.

The curvature of the bars results in a longer southern façade of the Cluster with the views towards the lake and mountains. Strong horizontal brise-soleiles frame the bars and by emphasising their curvature provide a distinctive presence of the Cluster. Horizontal stripes of parapet and brise-soleil wrap each bar and provide an optimum insulation and thermal comfort of the interior. The three curved stripes of the brise soleiles/parapet become a recognisable element of the Cluster seen from the regional road.

The programme inside the building is devised into three parallel bars running in the east-west direction. The middle one contains all the supporting programme of the building, while the outer two contain the primary programme.

The length of a particular bar is based on the amount of programme assigned to each organisation and as a reaction to the surrounding micro conditions (entrance, atrium, terrace,…). The width of a particular bar responds to the different spatial requirements of each space (office, auditorium, classroom, café,…) and can be different on each floor.

The outdoor esplanade is defined as a flat elevated green surface around the Cluster and the future extension of the neighbouring Internef building. As a mixed grass/paved plateau it continues the outdoor greenery of the UNIL campus.