First company to perceive the enormous expressive potentiality of glass block, in the last 10 years Seves glassblock has been involved in a process which aimed to transform glass block from a poor building material into an architectural furnishing element for interiors and exteriors, able to promptly respond to the evolution of contemporary styles.

Seves glassblock Tailor Made collection is actually composed by the mirrored block with its extraordinary 42.8x42.8x12cm dimensions, designed by Renzo Piano for the Maison Hermès in Tokyo, the 30x30cm trapezoidal block conceived by the architects Jeff Brock and Belen Moneo for the new Panticosa Resort in the Spanish Pyrenees, and the new glass block for Beck’s logistic centre in Bremen by Schulze – Pampus studio, personalized by the company in glass design and colour.

1- What are the origins of Beck’s building?
What is characteristic about the Beck&Co Brewery is its position inside the city of Bremen, directly on the Weser. Thus the brewery lies at the heart of the city. The new logistics centre is a central storage area for delivering filled beer bottles and is situated on a formerly undeveloped part of company property not far from the inner city, directly on one of the main roads connecting the centre. Due to its significant position within the cityscape, the design demands on the new building were high.

2- What gave birth to Beck’s project?
The project started out from an architectural competition held by the Beck&Co Brewers in November 2005. What was sought was a draught for the design of the facade of the 13,000 sq m large brewery logistics centre, to be erected on the crossing of two important roads. A special feature of the task was to develop a facade, conceived in the first building phase for a single storey warehouse, though enabling the simple raising of the building to a height of 18.00 metres in a second building phase. Our office was to judge the competition. The first building phase was completed at the end of 2006.

3- How was the project articulated (project concept)?
4- What are the technical aspects and details characterizing the project?
The building of the facade in preassembled glass blocks enables the maximum degree of prefabrication and hence the shortest building and assembly times. No storage of building material on the building site is needed, in that the parts are delivered and incorporated „just in time“.
The preassembled building technique is ideally suited to a later (2nd building phase) extension upwards of the facade. The dividing up the facade into regular square fields gives a calm and generous design, that arises out of the technical demands of the preassembled construction.
Hence its aesthetic appearance is not achieved by a mannered formulation of the design of the facade materials. The design works more in terms of the glass block material itself and its incorporation in the preassembled parts along with all the technical and constructive demands of the same. Conclusion: Formulation not via mannerism and design, but rather through the construction and the material in itself (glass blocks and cement).

5- Why did you choose the glass block for your project?
Glass blocks offer ideal possibilities for this building task to combine functions such as sound and heat insulation and natural lighting with aesthetic demands.

6- Why did you choose a glass block with this particular shape/colour/glass design/finishing?
7- Could you describe the technical details of the product?
The green colouring was chosen in that it refers to the green brand colour of the Beck&Co Brewery. The glass blocks are satin finished on the back, giving a translucent effects, that on the one hand conceals irregular features behind the facade, on the other hand guaranteeing an even diffusion of the colored backlighting of the same. The Alpha design with the circular symbol in glass blocks evokes the bottom of a beer bottle and subtly connects to the beer bottles stored behind the facade.

8- Could you please tell us something about the building method of the parts of building with glass blocks?
The glass block facade was built out of preassembled blocks 6 metres wide and 2 metres high. The parts were prefabricated and are made up of 3 fields of 8 x 8 glass blocks, that are encased in a 15 cm broad cement frame. The parts are 8cm thick.

9- Please explain to us the terms of the agreement you had with Seves glass block in order to obtain a final product which perfectly suited all your needs (timing, problem solving, eventual introduction of new production technologies, correspondence of the production technology to requirements)?
Particularly important for the successful completion of the project was the technical advice of the company Ammann Glas- und Metallbau Munich. Mr Emmanuello gave us important information as to the properties of the glass blocks and their working into the preassembled parts. The company also later delivered and assembled the preassembled parts.

10- Did the product satisfy you in terms of correspondence to your initial expectation?
Yes, I think that the optical effect of the facade in the daytime and particularly at nighttime combined with the green LED-backlighting is the exact picture of what we set ourselves in the architects’ competition.

11- Will you use the glass block specially conceived for Beck’s building in other projects in the future or do you consider it a unique “customized” application?
Naturally with this project the green Alpha glass block has to some degree become „Beck’s glass block”. For the time being I cannot imagine the green Alpha glass block being used in another project..

12- Please give us your personal opinion, as an architect, apart from the project you have spoken about. What kind of projects do you think the use of glass blocks more suitable for?
I particularly think that glass block has a future in largescale, demanding industrial and trade buildings, where the simple and speedy working into preassembled parts and the sturdy character of the same are particularly important. The not-so-advantageous transmittance of the glass blocks is rather only a secondary matter here.