THE MAKING OF THE INVESTCORP BUILDING, OXFORD
Michael Reifer, Frener
& Reifer
Zaha Hadid always tried to push the artistic boundaries of architecture, thus challenging
engineers and construction companies.
One of her last projects, an extension to St. Anthony’s
College, Oxford University, bridges the distance between two historic buildings with a glossy double-curved stainless steel
shape. The small but spectacular building was realized in collaboration with Frener & Reifer, a company that strives to
advance building technology in research and practice. The nearly seamless freeform steel facade with its electro-polished
surface was completely planned, manufactured and installed by the Italian cladding specialist.
Michael Reifer will
explain the design objectives that required an unusually precise prefabricated facade solution for the Investcorp Building
(a.k.a. “Softbridge”). He will compare the project with other buildings the company contributed to in the last years and he
will talk about technological improvements and his constant efforts to improve the data flow and close the digital chain of
design and production.