Wilkinson Eyre Architects has derived design inspiration from nature, art and science in conceiving the glass and metal external structure as a sculptural form. The new headquarters for Audi UK is notable for its sweeping curves that are reminiscent of a manta ray fish and the aerodynamic wing shapes of a B2 Stealth Aircraft.
The GBP45 million ($71.6 million) seven-story building, located adjacent to the elevated section of the M4, features three showroom floors. These showroom floors are designed to display as many as 116 cars. Two floors of exhibition and conference space and two basement levels housing a 32-bay workshop and extensive parking facilities are also incorporated into the new Audi building.
The top two stories house the Audi quattro rooms – a business and creative complex – which operates as a conference center. The volume of the new building displays a powerful geometry, curved in both plan and section. A raking glass façade provides an exciting shop window for the showroom spaces within. The showroom spaces are double-height spaces, filled with daylight, in which cars can be displayed at a variety of levels and perspectives.
The building is studded with a range of innovations including a 70m wide mezzanine floor totally suspended by a series of raking rods from the first floor slab, a hydraulic car lift serving seven floors as well as a 9m deep basement.
The Audi West London project also won a 2010 Structural Steel Design Award. Since 1969, the awards scheme has recognized high standards of design in the use of steel and its potential in terms of efficiency, cost effectiveness, aesthetics and innovation.
