Contact person
Vincent Wolfensberger
Client
Caisse de Pension de l'Etat de Vaud
Architect
Itten+Brechbühl AG; Dürig Architekten
Start of construction
2017
Start of operations
2019
Floor space
36 700 m2
Construction volume
116 300 m3
Photos
Fernando Guerra, Lisbon
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Lausanne, Switzerland
Vortex, New student housing accommodation
| Client | Caisse de pension de l'Etat de Vaud | ||||||||
| Planning / Construction | 2017-2019 | ||||||||
| Architecture | Itten+Brechbühl SA; Dürig Architekten | ||||||||
| Surface area | 36'700 m2 | ||||||||
| Construction volume | 116'300 m3 | ||||||||
| |||||||||
The State of Vaud launched this project for a new building on the periphery of the University of Lausanne in response to the ever-increasing demand for university student accommodation on its territory.
The structure’s impressive dimensions make it a notable addition to the campus shared by the University of Lausanne and the Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, and it has also taken its place as a striking feature of the entire Lake Geneva shorescape.
The Vortex combines many elements of the urban fabric in one single structure. With its circular design, the building functions as a landmark in the surrounding country towards which everything converges. Its dimensions make it a dominant feature of the whole region, establishing a link between the city and its universities. Finally, its accommodation units arrayed along a 2.8-kilometer spiral ramp winding up through the ten levels of the cylindrical building.
This circular building is a unique place and communicative place on campus and its ramp, a quintessential element of this new social unit, encouraging a sense of belonging, social contacts, exchanges and a form of solidarity.
The planning was carried out in BIM and the project was a prize-winner at the Building Smart Awards ceremony in Tokyo in 2018.
In 2020, the Vortex was awarded first prize in the "Mixed Office Building" category of the Real Estate Awards and in 2022 it was one of the finalist projects in the A+Awards.
The building was also awarded Gold in the Excellent Architecture category of the German Design Award 2023.
