Printshop Veenman

The new building for Veenman printers in Ede consists of two sections: the printing works with the necessary stock room and an office section. The site is in a typical business location amongst a lot of fairly randomly dispersed buildings of mediocre quality in which the office section is always articulated and materialized differently from the production section. In order to avoid this traditional distinction between white- and blue- collar workers, we opted for a continuous elevation that is wrapped, as it were, around the building. In addition, the building is organized around a courtyard garden from which the various departments are in visual contact with ione another. Thiscourtyard garden – designed by West 8 – forms a counterpoint to the neighbouring business premises and creates a pleasant work climate that is in touch with the changing seasons.
The facade is composed of three sections: a black concrete plinth, a row of windows in the plinth and above this is glazed section. The later consists of glass panels thourgh which it is possible to see the light-reflective insulation. The glazing is mounted in a simple framework derived from greenhouse construction. The glass is printed with a text by K. Schippers - layout by K. Martens -.
The building has a V-shaped roof. The section is such that the areas requiring a lot of head-space are located under the highest section of the roof. The volume is indented at two spotsů the main entrance, which is marked by the load-bearing company logo, and the despatch entrance. Together with the V-shaped cornice line, they add up to form a striking volume that can be recognized from the motorway.