Honor Award

• Division: Commercial
• Location: Mannheim, Germany
• Architect: Muphy/Jahn
• Client: Mannheimer Holding AG
• General contractor: Hochtief Construction AG
• Consultants: Werner Sobek Ingenieure GmbH (Structural); Transsolar Energeietechnik GmbH, and Brandi Consult GmbH (Mechanical); Peter Walker & Partners, and Freier Wolfgang Roth (Landscape Architecture); L-Plan Lichtplanung (Lighting); AIK Expeditions Lumiere (Lighting Design); Jappsen + Stangler GmbH (Elevator and Window Washing); Horstmann + Berger (Building Physics)

Overview

This addition to a corporate headquarters from 1990 relies on sophisticated technology and abundant transparency to juxtapose itself with its older sibling. "It's trying to push sustainability to a new level," one juror said of the building's many technological solutions. They include taking in outside air at each floor and distributing it horizontally—eliminating the need for gigantic air handlers and vertical shafts—and a twin-shell façade to reduce energy consumption. Technology aside, "it's filled with light and detail," and handsomely expresses its materials.