Cubo arranges "unmistakably Lego" innovation centre around 25‑tonne brick
Architecture studio Cubo has unveiled the Kornmarken Campus manufacturing innovation centre as the latest building on the Lego campus in Denmark.
Located in Billund, near Lego's headquarters and the BIG-designed Lego House, the hybrid mass-timber and concrete building contains the toy brand's innovation and manufacturing teams.
It was designed by Cubo to be easily recognisable as a Lego building with oversized Technic blocks integrated into the facade.
"The architectural expression of the building stands as a landmark in Billund together with Lego House and Lego Campus and expresses the building's main functions and identity by showing its technical and industrial character while enhancing the playfulness of the Lego Group," Cubo partner Per Ravn told Dezeen.
"The ambition was to bring Lego and its ideology into the building by combining playfulness, creativity, innovation, and engineering in the architectural expression," he continued.
"The facade design was inspired by Lego Technic bricks, creating a strong visual connection to the Lego universe while reflecting the building’s identity as a workplace primarily for engineers and employees with a strong technical background."
The building, which is attached to the pre-existing production facility, is home to 1,800 Lego employees who design and test the toy brand's latest products and materials.
It contains a mix of office spaces and testing areas, with the Test & Innovation Centre, Materials Lab, Additive Manufacturing Centre and Training Academy all housed inside.
"Kornmarken Campus is built around one fundamental idea: to break down the distance between those who develop the technology and those who use it in practice," said Ravn. "Where employees were previously spread across several different locations, they are now gathered side by side with test facilities, laboratories, and production equipment."
"The architecture of Kornmarken Campus balances openness and confidentiality – two conditions that are essential to the building's identity and function," he continued.
"This contrast is expressed in the facade design, with large enclosed production halls towards the exterior and more transparent office facilities placed higher up in the building."
The main atrium is arranged around an oversized red Lego brick, which weighs 25 tonnes and appears suspended within a mould, while historic moulds and plans are on display as a nod to the brand's engineering history.
"The new Campus brings the Lego brand to life through bold design elements such as the giant 25-tonne red two-by-four Lego brick in its mould and the brick-built moulding machine in the atrium, as well as glass installations with original moulds and technical drawings," Lego head of workplace design Rune Sanggård Andersen told Dezeen.
"Beyond aesthetics, they act as a storytelling device – linking directly to the work that goes on inside the walls of the building, our values and craftsmanship heritage."
As the building contains both office space and more technical test areas, Cubo designed a concrete-and-timber structure.
"Kornmarken Campus is a hybrid combining a concrete structure in the test facility with office spaces in timber," said Ravn.
"Constructing a technical and industrial facility in timber presented some challenges; the project involved a wide range of highly specialised functions that had to be carefully integrated throughout the entire process," he continued.
"These included strict requirements for acoustics, fire safety, and indoor climate, as well as large structural spans in the load-bearing timber structures, all of which placed significant demands on both design and engineering."
Overall, Lego wanted to create a space that both encouraged innovation and was "unmistakably Lego".
"The Lego Technic elements on the building's facade reflect the precision and engineering excellence behind the brick and serve as a tribute to the people who work here," said Andersen. "They make the building unmistakably Lego, and draw a link back to Lego Campus, our first Campus in Billund."
"We often say we have one shared language, but many dialects," he continued. "That means that every workplace should meet the same high level of functionality and quality, while still expressing its own unique identity."
Previously, Lego bricks were incorporated into the facade of an office building on the Lego campus by CF Møller Architects, while the toy company's City road plates were the basis of the facade of a car park in Billund.
Project credits:
Architect: Cubo
General Contractor: KG Hansen
Consulting engineer: Rambøll
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