Inside-In Office Building, Budapest

Architects: Donát Rabb, Zsolt Alexa, Ákos Schreck
Text: Anna Zöldi 
Photos: Tamás Török / Topogram

Redesigned by Minusplus, this building was a readily found object that the creators took on with great excitement. They worked on it until they achieved a result that everyone concerned liked: a well-functioning, cool contemporary interior with an industrial aesthetic that showcased and even enhanced the original structure, and which, last but not least, did not burden the client’s budget. The former industrial hall, named Inside-In, was reborn as the headquarters of an infrastructure construction company. The name speaks for itself: the designers went even further inside, creating the new office space based on the „house within a house” principle. This was not only for the sake of a pun, but for highly rational reasons. When utilizing industrial halls, the creation of boundary structures that meet modern energy standards involves a significant financial investment and countless hours of work targeting to create the appropriate junctions. However, if instead of a complicated cladding system, we cut through the Gordian knot with a bold move and start building within the existing structure, everything turns out to be a lot simpler and cheaper. The concept is a clear one: transparent spaces, lightweight industrial furniture, cheerful palettes, and the original structure is exposed as much as possible, creating a composition that reveals a harmonious unity of the old and the new.

Architecture: Minusplus
Lead architects: Donát Rabb, Zsolt Alexa, Ákos Schreck
Senior project architect: Bea Bernard 
Architects: Henriett Gelányi, Anna Flóra Tátrai, András Tislér, Klaudia Jovány, Zsófia Erdei
Electrical engineering: István Márton – VBN Engineering
Fire protection: Zsolt Fenyvesi – F.S.Z.Engineering
Structural expert: Péter Rabb – 2 Rabb
Structure: Gábor Bimbó, Viktor Budaházy – STR-Design
HVAC: Tamás Hrustinszky – Hr Bt.
Public utilities: Gergely Széles – GÉM Ltd.