The scale of the building makes it important to establish its identity externally, the skin is deliberately simple and the surface is only broken by significant points of public entry and to indicate the presence of the more significant events within the building.
The major spaces within the congress centre are both distinctive formally and in size and the building is a seamless skin, it is clear at the lower levels through which the sculptural forms and volumes of the main spaces can be recognised.
Integration into the city has been considered in two ways. Firstly the geometry and form of the walkways and internal piazzas is seen as a conscious extension of both the existing pattern of open space and the orthogonal geometry of the city. Secondly the height of the building has been kept to a point where the structure of the existing congress hall can be read in conjunction with the new building.
The building organisation relies on four distinct layers, arranged on eight levels. The clear separation between access, exhibition, conference and infrastructure is through ease of utility and to enable the visitor to clearly comprehend the space.
Those arriving by car approach the building from the north, the glass skin at this point reveals the immense sculptural form of the main auditoria. Both during the day and at night the formal composition is intended to introduce the significance of the building at its function within the city. As the visitor turns, further sculptural profiles are revealed indicating the presence of the conference complex. Glimpses are caught by those arriving by car into the exhibition area with the weight of the auditorium forms floating above as they travel along the approach route to the entrance foyer. This sequence of glimpses is intended to announce intrigue and raise a spirit of enquiry.
