Credit: ©Baloise
On Wednesday 5 July 2023, Bâloise, BPI Real Estate and the CLE construction company inaugurated their new WOODEN headquarters in Leudelange.
The event took place in the presence of the Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel, Luxembourg Minister of Finance Yuriko Backes, Markus Börlin, Ambassador of Switzerland to Luxembourg, the Mayor of Leudelange, Lou Linster, and 200 guests, all gathered to celebrate the inauguration of the new, sustainably built WOODEN building.
Bâloise, CLE and BPI, the three tenants of the WOODEN building, moved there in early 2023. Six months after their installation, they unanimously reported an increase in well-being and positive emotions due to the presence of wood in the offices.
Pierre Ylieff, Head of IT Architecture at Bâloise, said: “WOODEN stands out for its cosy and peaceful atmosphere resulting from a structure made of wood. The combination of massive beams and large windows gives the impression of working in a natural space that is constantly open to the outside.”
Several decorative wooden staircases are placed in the interior spaces of WOODEN to facilitate movement and offer accessibility between the building’s six levels.
Laurie Ensch, Project Manager at Baloise, commented: “The central staircases encourage me to walk more. I prefer them over the lifts to get from one floor to another. The layout of the various workspaces, particularly informal areas, also allows for more spontaneous exchanges and promotes communication across departments.”
Julien Ekoret, Quality and Environment Manager at CLE, also reportedly noticed that his colleagues had quickly settled into the premises: “People are smiling more, the spaces are more welcoming and ergonomic, spatial organisation improves communication between departments.”
The 530 employees who come to WOODEN every day (470 people at Bâloise, 42 at CLE and eighteen at BPI) can use spaces like the “Village”, the central place of life within the building, aimed at promoting encounters and exchanges between colleagues.
Christine Theodorovics, CEO of Baloise since 1 June 2023, shared his belief that “after the pandemic, we needed a structure to relearn how to live and work together, also to strengthen the sense of belonging at Bâloise. And what could be better than this new headquarters to enhance a sense of unity? WOODEN is the symbol of our commitment to our employees, it is a modern, stimulating and fulfilling work environment.”
According to Baloise, WOODEN is in the process of obtaining the WELL Building Standard® Gold certification. It is the first construction label in the world that assesses the health and well-being of building users according to ten criteria: air, water, food, light, movement, temperature, sound environment, materials, atmosphere and community. WOODEN is also in the process of being certified BREEAM Excellent.
Across every stage of the building lifecycle, the real estate sector accounts for more than a third of CO2 emissions. According to Bâloise, wood construction can significantly reduce the environmental footprint of buildings and constitutes a go option in terms of eco-design.
Wood (a regenerative resource) used in the construction of WOODEN comes exclusively from PEFC-certified forests in the greater region. When one tree is cut down, two more are replanted.
In addition, the transformation of wood into a constructable element requires little energy. On the contrary, it is said to be “carbonivorous”, because the carbon that has accumulated there during its growth, thanks to photosynthesis, remains trapped there until its end of life.
IKO Real Estate and BPI Real Estateo co-developed WOODEN. With 9,600 m2 of office space, WOODEN is the first building for the service sector in Luxembourg to be built of wood. Currently, new projects are following suit in the country.
Arnaud Regout, Managing Director of BPI Real Estate Luxembourg, said he was thrilled that it is becoming more than a trend but a necessity to decarbonise the construction sector: “It’s terrific if WOODEN paves the way for alternative construction methods in Luxembourg. I hope this private initiative, spearheaded jointly with our partner IKO Real Estate, will inspire the public sector to make timber construction the norm.”
Christophe Herrmann, Managing Director of CLE, concluded: “CLE is extremely proud to have completed such construction with our own teams. Today, our headquarters is a great showcase of our group’s know-how. It symbolises the attention we pay to both the well-being of our employees and our environmental footprint.”
Construction of WOODEN began at the end of 2020 for delivery at the end of 2022 (including rental fittings). This is a co-development between IKO Real Estate and BPI Real Estate, CLE with the help of wood specialist Wood Shapers (also from the CFE group). The building is fully leased to Baloise, CLE and BPI and was sold at the end of 2022 to the Swiss investor ACRON.
