A monumental space, now a state-of-the-art headquarters
The challenge
The iconic monumental Stationspostgebouw in The Hague, a former postal sorting facility, formed the starting point for an in-depth design-led investigation into its potential transformation into a contemporary workplace for PostNL. Rather than starting from a predefined brief, the project was approached as an open exploration into how PostNL’s organisational culture, ambitions and identity could be spatially translated within an existing monumental structure.
The impact
The design-led research explored how the concrete colossus could be transformed into a comfortable, human-centred workplace concept, building on its imposing scale and raw materiality while critically testing how the existing structure could support PostNL's forward-looking ambitions.
Respecting the building’s industrial character, the research deliberately took the raw concrete structure, ceilings and beams as a given, using them as a starting point rather than masking them through extensive interventions.
The concept development built on the building’s inherent spatial diversity. Through spatial studies, the typology of the structure was analysed as a basis for organising diverse work environments: ranging from dynamic informal meeting areas near central escalators to quieter concentration zones in more secluded parts of the building, and potential collective spaces along the façade that could vertically connect office floors.
Developed in close collaboration with PostNL and developing partners LIFE and Sens, the concept and feasibility study provided key insights into the spatial capacity, flexibility and range of work environments that could realistically be accommodated within the repurposed monument.