Macors Offices

Macors Offices | Namur, Belgium | 2019

[LRARCHITECTES]

Photography by: Maxime Vermeulen

The project is located at the entrance to the village of Hamois along the Chaussée de Liège. Descending towards the bottom of the valley, the N97 offers the traveller a landscape that is typical of the Condroz, where ridges and depressions alternate. The offices of the Macors companies benefit from great visibility along this promenade thanks to the combined effect of this road and the park on the western side.

The site, formed by the meeting of the two main streets in a triangular block, is a strategic location. The office extension proposes an entrance façade on the Rue d’Emptinne side and expands the “pocket” between the various existing buildings. The new space created, protected from the wind, becomes an outdoor multi-purpose area where employees and workers can meet.

The aim is to develop the Macors company at the level of internal management (employees). The office complex consisted of two buildings: a building built before the 1970s with grey plastered walls and a slate roof, and a building built in 2000 with natural concrete walls and anodised aluminium corrugated sheets with a flat roof.

The new building has its own identity. As a witness to an era, its expression allows the company’s evolution to be formalised.

The architecture developed reflects the brand image of the construction company, simple and efficient. The facades towards the park and towards Rue d’Emptinne (entrance facade) are completely glazed. This transparency formalises the identity of the extension. Like a large screen, it reveals to the village of Hamois the life, activity and people of this company.

The “tripled volumes” are united by a 50m long circulation space. Unitary and smooth on the inside, the different exterior forms mark strong identities. The siblings avoid the pitfall of large, out-of-scale office complexes in a village centre.

Four landscaped offices and a refectory/reception room are integrated into the project. The refectory is located on the ground floor to be in relation with the park and the two terraces. The offices are located on the park side so that all employees can enjoy the bucolic atmosphere of the place.

The simplicity of the plan extends to the construction. The two closed facades take up the weight of the building. Concrete is used, reflecting the structure but also the know-how of the construction company. The rebellious child, with its three floors, underlines the proportions of its elders, that is the family spirit. Text description by the architects.