Spanning 783,800 sf across its 11 stories, Zurich’s new North American headquarters in Schaumburg, Ill., houses almost 3,000 employees and contractors in a “stacked bars” office complex. Designed by Goettsch Partners, with Clayco as the developer and design-builder, the LEED Platinum-certified building breaks free from the typical center-core suburban office form with a trio of rectangular boxes that are offset and stacked. The top bar is 500 feet long, spans 180 feet between the bottom two bars, and cantilevers out 60 feet to the east, directly on axis with downtown Chicago, 28 miles to the southeast.
The HQ’s unusual arrangement offers numerous benefits, including optimal views of the surrounding landscape, improved solar orientation for amenities, and programmatic flexibility for Zurich. It also creates multiple spaces and amenities to encourage collaboration and wellness among employees, including green roofs, outdoor terraces, and a system of walking trails.
The project’s interior designer and workplace strategist, CannonDesign, led an extensive workplace pilot program and employee survey project (1,300 responses were recorded) to optimize the design scheme. More than 150 employees spent three weeks testing four uniquely configured office neighborhoods, each with different styles of desks, chairs, enclaves, conference rooms, and informal meeting spaces. The final design, which incorporates adjustable sit/stand desks, a variety of formal and informal meeting spaces, and decentralized break areas, was selected based on performance and feedback, including increased interaction among teams, decreased waiting times, and more flexibility.
Also on the Building Team: JLL (client’s rep.), WSP/Halvorson and Partners (SE), V3 Companies (CE), Thornton Tomasetti (sustainability consultant), and Hoerr Schaudt Landscape Architects.
©James Steinkamp Photography
©James Steinkamp Photography
Related Stories
Office Buildings | Jan 26, 2022
BlackRock’s Innovation Hub in Atlanta showcases its global design guidelines
The two-story space harkens to the city’s culture and past.
Coronavirus | Jan 20, 2022
Advances and challenges in improving indoor air quality in commercial buildings
Michael Dreidger, CEO of IAQ tech startup Airsset speaks with BD+C's John Caulfield about how building owners and property managers can improve their buildings' air quality.
3D Printing | Jan 12, 2022
Using 3D-printed molds to create unitized window forms
COOKFOX designer Pam Campbell and Gate Precast's Mo Wright discuss the use of 3D-printed molds from Oak Ridge National Lab to create unitized window panels for One South First, a residential-commercial high-rise in Brooklyn, N.Y.
Headquarters | Oct 28, 2021
Florida’s Seagate Development Group tackles design-build projects from a developer’s vantage
A “single point of contact” for clients, says its CEO.
Office Buildings | Oct 26, 2021
A massive office reno project in Detroit sought to create destination spaces for returning workers
The interior design firm Pophouse relied heavily on employee input for a pilot remodel.
Cladding and Facade Systems | Oct 26, 2021
14 projects recognized by DOE for high-performance building envelope design
The inaugural class of DOE’s Better Buildings Building Envelope Campaign includes a medical office building that uses hybrid vacuum-insulated glass and a net-zero concrete-and-timber community center.
Office Buildings | Oct 21, 2021
Swinerton opens new regional headquarters in Charlotte
Redline Design Group designed the adaptive reuse project.
Office Buildings | Oct 18, 2021
Henning Larsen designs new headquarters building for KAB
The project is located in Copenhagen.
Glass and Glazing | Sep 30, 2021
Plans move forward on Central Place Sydney, duel towers with an AI-driven façade system
SOM and Fender Katsalidis are designing the project.
Office Buildings | Sep 29, 2021
Walmart’s new Home Office is the largest mass timber campus project in the U.S.
The project will occupy approximately 350 acres.
