High-ceilinged and elegant offices

In Copenhagen, Denmark’s largest provider of commercial real estate services Colliers has just moved from cramped and maze-like premises to new and spacious offices with fantastically high ceilings – the result of an extensive renovation project.

Photo: Helene Høyer Mikkelsen

At the new address at Toldbodgade 33, visitors and employees find themselves in a modern and stylish environment, but at the same time in a very special building.

Dating from the 19th century, the variegated history of the property includes having been used as a winter storage facility for Tivoli. This explains the original industrial structure with load-bearing columns and almost five-metre-high ceilings.

Suspended ceilings were removed, new floors were laid, and windows and doors were painted black to recreate the industrial look. The ceilings are all clad in white Troldtekt acoustic panels, which together with the underlying mineral wool guarantee the necessary acoustic regulation. In combination with the white walls and the columns, the white ceilings make the premises feel very spacious and bright.

Fluidity

Colliers’ own architects and the Colliers Occupier Services technical team have been in charge of the space planning. At the time, Helle Nøhr headed this part of the project. This role has now been taken over by Tine Mouritsen and her team, and going forward she and her team will be in charge of space planning for both Colliers’ customers and their own offices.

We spoke with Tine Mouritsen, who is an architect and employed as Head of Workplace Advisory in Colliers.

“Lighting plays an important role in rooms with high ceilings. In the same way that the acoustics are crucial to creating a pleasant ambience and a sound working environment in offices, meeting rooms and canteens,” she says.

She adds that it has been an exciting process transplanting her colleagues from a workplace consisting of lots of little rooms to the new and spatially interconnected rooms at Toldbodgade, where large and sculptural lamps are dotted around the offices as an eye-catching interior design element.