Carnegie

A modern brokerage house in an old, historic engineering hall

Year of completion

2013
Square meters

2 700
Workspaces

75

As a result of Norwegian Properties (NPRO) comprehensive rehabilitation plan for the buildings at Aker Brygge, Carnegie chose to move into new premises at the old engineering hall on the former Akers Mekaniske Verksted shipyard. In collaboration with architects from SPACE Group, IARK has adapted the old, historic hall to modern office spaces, whilst the objective of Carnegie was to prepare an improved and representative brokerage house in an appealing location, which reflects the group’s identity with pride and honour.

IARK’s focus was to create positive associations with Carnegie’s new Norwegian headquarters and the many characteristic features of the financial advisory group. A combination of aesthetics and materials were chosen as the foundation for an efficient working environment and identity-structuring atmosphere. The premises are comprised of customer areas with reception and meeting rooms, a brokerage room, workspaces in an open plan and cell offices. In addition, a number of different features, such as a canteen, auditorium, conversation rooms and a gym were facilitated and then implemented into the project.

The final result is a modern brokerage house with a distinct identity, elevated by the building’s background and surroundings; premises which Carnegie can fully identify with, and perfectly suited to accommodate customers, other business associates, visitors and guests, bringing the company both pride and comfort.

1 Carnegie — Resepsjonens Materialitet

Resepsjonen representerer flere av materialene som går igjen i interiørets palett og består av spiler i betong, stål og eik, og uttrykker seg som stilren og stram. I resepsjonsområde er det lyst og luftig, med utsyn over meglersalen og Akershus festning utenfor huset.

© Ketil Jacobsen

2 Carnegie — The reception area.

© Ketil Jacobsen

3 Carnegie — The Brokerage Room

The brokerage room seen from the reception area. The large old windows and double height ceiling provide proximity to the waterfront and add space and volume to the otherwise densely furnished area.

© Ketil Jacobsen

4 Carnegie — The Internal Staircase

: Access to the boardroom, seen from one of the brokerage sections; the internal staircase connects the two floors together.

© Ketil Jacobsen

5 Carnegie — The Boardroom

The boardroom with glass walls facing the brokerage room, overlooking the inner Oslo Fjord. A round table, stylish black leather chairs, striking light fixture and pale curtains for the window bring exclusive warmth to the room; bright and transparent.

© Ketil Jacobsen

6 Carnegie — Subdued, Neutral Interior

External conference room with a subdued, neutral interior. The chairs in these conference rooms are similar in design, but vary in fabric, leather and colour. This provides unity, whilst at the same time giving each room its own distinct character and identity.

© Ketil Jacobsen

7 Carnegie — Historical Reminder

The decorative filming image on the wall is repeated in all the conference rooms, but with varying designs; therefore leaving their own unique impression throughout the premises. The design displayed on the filming in the photograph above is derived from the building’s origin as a ship-engineering hall; a reminder of the past activities that took place on the premises, when Aker Mekaniske Verksted was still a fully operational shipyard.

© Ketil Jacobsen

8 Carnegie — Rough Paper

External meeting room. The surface of the end wall consists of rough pieces of paper assembled in multiple layers. It has a soft rippling appearance, and is meant to represent the kind of shimmer one can see on the surface of the Oslo Fjord during a bright sunny day.

© Ketil Jacobsen

9 Carnegie — Pipervika

: “Pipervika”, a room for informal meetings named after the bay stretching out from the waterfront towards Akershus Fortress. The design displayed on the panel filming is an old image of Pipervika and the former shipyard facilities located there at that point in time.

© Ketil Jacobsen

10 Carnegie — View into the Heart of the Building

: Specially designed tables made of fibre-reinforced concrete lead the way towards the canteen. From here people have a direct view into the heart of the building and the atrium, which catches and distributes plenty of natural sunlight.

© Ketil Jacobsen