SAPPHIRE

Bruxelles (Belgium)

MAIN CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PROJECT:

Location :

Angle Rue Montoyer et Rue de l’Industrie, Bruxelles (B)

Area :

8650m2

Architect(s) :

Atelier d’Architecture de Genval

Delivered :

2003

Investor(s) :

Ducroire

Tenant(s) :

Ducroire

Designed in 1958 by the architects André Jacqmain and Jules Wabbes, the Foncolin building was occupied for 40 years before being emptied and put up for sale. This emblematic building was considered a world first in the domain of concrete construction.

Codic faced a fascinating challenge when it acquired the Foncolin building and it immediately asked André Jacqmain to examine the possibility of renovating the building. After several months of reflection, the architect concluded that it wasn’t possible to save the building and that it would have to be demolished and rebuilt.

Thierry Behiels came up with a new challenge for André Jacqmain who accepted it within two weeks. He designed a new building with a strong architectural expression and once the choice of stone had been made (blue Labrador granite) and the blue windows selected, it made complete sense to name it the Sapphire building.

A fragment of the old facade in the foyer creates a link with the new Sapphire building. It is a memorial to the past.

Codic has always sought to mark the sites of its developments. The building that everyone can admire today isn’t a development but the emotional outburst of a talented expert.