Tscherning HQ

Tscherning’s new headquarters is an entirely radical way of designing an office interior, one that truly negotiates between people and materials. The existing warehouse, home of the greenest deconstruction company in Denmark, was transformed into a stimulating and progressive workplace office area with meeting facilities. The project is a mindset shifter: rather than understanding renovations as going from imperfect to perfect, it pushes the industry to consider going from imperfect to authentic. Working solely with salvaged elements from Tscherning’s demolitions, 3XN GXN had a steep learning curve ahead of them. As a result, the transformation has been carried out with almost 89% reclaimed materials and has a CO2 impact of 2.57 kg CO2e per m² per year, which is 58% lower than a similar building made from new materials. Moreover, the irregularity and patina of reused materials can influence a positive bodily response in users and support their well-being. These materials allow the transformation of the old warehouse into a series of sensory-rich spaces that stimulate the senses and foster social interactions. Working with reused materials, however, is not business as usual. There is a level of hands-on attentiveness that requires designers to get out of their comfort zones and navigate the uncertainty of the design process. Every piece being brought in has a story that can be traced back to a demolition site, a particular building, or a particular process. The material strategies employed in Tscherning HQ have the capacity to render evident the narratives embedded in pre-used elements, and to honour materials ripe for repurposing, rejecting an extractive economy. And while a circular economy saves carbon and alleviates the burden of construction on virgin materials, a holistic understanding of sustainability needs to also focus on people’s experience of place. For 3XN GXN, Tscherning House’s design is about dignity: dignifying reused materials and the worker’s experience. A diversity of settings provides surprising views and angles that incentivise a dynamic exploration of what is not in plain sight. The main architectural approach sees the building as an experience route, where you move through different zones, each with their own identity, character and atmosphere. The idea is to give the user diverse experiences, create curiosity, invite to explore and offer surprises. The project achieves harmony, room for variation, and character. The colour scheme across the project prefers toned-down and neutral colours, with consistent materials such as wood, steel, and greenery. In Tscherning HQ, aesthetics stem from a circular attitude rather than preconceived as a departure point. This strategy focused on people’s experience of the place and fostered a shared identity between pre-used materials and workers at the company. Reusing means dignifying imperfect textures and unpredictable properties. It is not about prioritising value over appearance but rather about challenging preconceptions of beauty altogether.