The ETH Basel facility integrates an 8-story above-ground volume and 2 basement levels into a sensitive urban context, preserving mature trees and establishing landscape continuity with the adjacent Heritage Garden. Recessed ground-floor facades on the north and west form covered public corridors that draw pedestrian movement into the heart of the campus.
Volumetric Dual-Block Composition:
Lower Massing (Levels 1–5): Aligns with site limits and street geometry, extending the Bio-Pharmazentrum entrance line with a singular south cantilever framing the main access.
Upper Massing (Levels 6–7): Step-backed along the south and east facades to reduce visual impact from the city and neighboring public realm.
Public Core & Rhine Connection: The ground floor lobby and fifth-floor sky lounge form the primary public anchors, linked by a monumental atrium staircase with direct visual orientation toward the Rhine River.
Spatial Organization & Material Palette
Atrium & Structural Grid: The volume is split into four distinct programmatic sectors by an E-W daylight atrium and a N-S vertical circulation spine. A mirror-finished atrium cladding amplifies daylight deep into the interior, including the B1 sunken garden labs. The building follows a rigid 1.80 m planning grid with demountable partitions for seamless laboratory reconfigurations.
Laboratory Finishes: Monolithic white epoxy resin flooring, exposed service ceiling distributions for rapid maintenance access, white-painted walls, and multi-layer wood casework.
Office Environments: Micro-perforated steel acoustic ceiling panels with invisible joints, paired with full-height glazed corridor partitions.
Public Lounges (Ground & Level 5): Industrial raw aluminum flooring combined with large-scale architectural photographs printed on tensioned ceiling fabrics.
Volumetric Dual-Block Composition:
Lower Massing (Levels 1–5): Aligns with site limits and street geometry, extending the Bio-Pharmazentrum entrance line with a singular south cantilever framing the main access.
Upper Massing (Levels 6–7): Step-backed along the south and east facades to reduce visual impact from the city and neighboring public realm.
Public Core & Rhine Connection: The ground floor lobby and fifth-floor sky lounge form the primary public anchors, linked by a monumental atrium staircase with direct visual orientation toward the Rhine River.
Spatial Organization & Material Palette
Atrium & Structural Grid: The volume is split into four distinct programmatic sectors by an E-W daylight atrium and a N-S vertical circulation spine. A mirror-finished atrium cladding amplifies daylight deep into the interior, including the B1 sunken garden labs. The building follows a rigid 1.80 m planning grid with demountable partitions for seamless laboratory reconfigurations.
Laboratory Finishes: Monolithic white epoxy resin flooring, exposed service ceiling distributions for rapid maintenance access, white-painted walls, and multi-layer wood casework.
Office Environments: Micro-perforated steel acoustic ceiling panels with invisible joints, paired with full-height glazed corridor partitions.
Public Lounges (Ground & Level 5): Industrial raw aluminum flooring combined with large-scale architectural photographs printed on tensioned ceiling fabrics.
Client
University of Basel and Basel-City
Program
Education / laboratory
Partner in charge
Toshihiro Kubota
Yves Bachmann
Francisco Martinez
Landscape archtect
Bassinet Turquin Paysage
Construction Management
Imooo AG
Structure Engineer
Bauingenieure HKP AG
Laboratory Consultant
Sedc
Energy and building technology
Amstein + Walthert Basel AG
Economist
Confirm AG
Perspectives
Jigen
Model
Model & co
University of Basel and Basel-City
Program
Education / laboratory
Partner in charge
Toshihiro Kubota
Yves Bachmann
Francisco Martinez
Landscape archtect
Bassinet Turquin Paysage
Construction Management
Imooo AG
Structure Engineer
Bauingenieure HKP AG
Laboratory Consultant
Sedc
Energy and building technology
Amstein + Walthert Basel AG
Economist
Confirm AG
Perspectives
Jigen
Model
Model & co