At a celebratory event on 7 October, client Triple Living, contractor Van Laere, future tenant BNP Paribas Fortis and David Chipperfield Architects marked the formal unveiling of Orchard – a new, sustainable office building in Antwerp’s Nieuw Zuid district. Rather than laying a traditional first stone, a symbolic act was chosen: the placement of a wooden column using a crane.
The design features an innovative timber structure utilising hybrid concrete-wood floor elements, wooden columns, and timber frame walls, significantly reducing CO₂ emissions. Orchard forms part of a larger project by the practice that will include a second residential building, with both structures designed to frame a new garden orchard.
On completion, the six-storey, 7,250m² office building will accommodate over 350 employees and be the new Antwerp home for BNP Paribas Fortis. Construction is progressing on site, with completion scheduled for June 2026.
Image © Frederik Beyens for Triple Living