EXPO Business Park in Bucharest awarded WELL® Health-Safety accreditation

EXPO Business Park in Bucharest, designed by Chapman Taylor, has been awarded WELL® Health-Safety accreditation in recognition of its focus on the physical and mental health and safety of tenants, visitors and building staff.

The 70,600m² GBA was developed by Portland Trust, ARES Management LP and Bluehouse Capital, and comprises three self-contained office buildings set over a shared two-level basement parking structure. A key focus of the design for EXPO Business Park was to provide attractive and healthy work environments for the buildings’ users.

In keeping with Chapman Taylor’s Responsible Design principles, the project was conceived to incorporate the latest thinking on sustainability and wellbeing issues. The office spaces are naturally ventilated, with openable windows to provide purge ventilation, and was constructed with anti-microbial materials to reduce the risk of virus and bacteria transmission. The design makes maximum use of daylight and provides a bright and welcoming environment. There are also green landscaped areas throughout the site, with soft landscaping at street level and also on a series of roof terraces that provide relaxing and enjoyable amenity spaces for the staff.

The project was planned to the highest environmental standards, incorporating innovative building systems and renewable energy sources. It is the first new office development in Bucharest to achieve BREEAM Outstanding accreditation for sustainability, doing so for all three buildings. The complex includes rooftop solar panels to heat hot water for the buildings, touch-free access, LED lighting throughout, vehicle recognition technology, cycle racks and shower facilities.

The scheme is located to the north-west of Bucharest city centre, with a metro station only four minutes’ walk away and a tram stop next to the site. It also benefits from its proximity to the city’s largest park, Regele Mihai I.

The development won three 2019 CIJ Romania Awards: The Grand Prix award for “Project of the Year”, “Best Office Lease of the Year” (for the 19,000m² ING Bank lease of the nine-floor Building C) and “Best Bucharest Standalone Office Development”. When ING Bank were choosing a new location for their headquarters in Bucharest, one of their key criteria was the quality of the space, both inside and outside the buildings, in which their teams would spend time.

Chapman Taylor’s Responsible Design strategy reflects the fact that our work involves a much broader vision than just environmental sustainability. The term “Responsible Design” includes the socio-economic implications of our work, covering areas such as designing for the physical and mental wellbeing of people who inhabit and use the spaces we create. Working, for example, with the established principles of the WELL^® Building Standard, our definition of environmentally friendly design includes understanding the way in which our designs can positively contribute to good physical and mental health.

Photographer: Vlad Patru, @vlad.patru, vlad@node.studio