Platform about design and technology in the kitchen, home, and bathroom industry
BORA stands for innovative solutions in the living kitchen. The company is currently constructing an iconic building in Herford, the heart of the German kitchen industry in East Westphalia. The new complex offers visitors a multifaceted brand and product experience and an introduction to “the BORA principle.” For BORA, establishing a presence in the metropolitan region for kitchens is the next logical step. The new complex is intended to create added value for customers and trade partners, as well as for the city of Herford and its residents.
The new building on Ahmser Straße, where a sports hotel used to stand, has changed the face of Herford forever. Visible from afar, the unconventional building is located directly on the B 239 ring road and is easily accessible via the A2 for all visitors to Küchenmeile, Germany's most important trade fair for the kitchen industry. “We want to be close to our trading partners and offer as many interested customers as possible the opportunity to experience the BORA Experience live. That’s why we fully support the investment in the Herford location,” says BORA founder and CEO Willi Bruckbauer. The project is also welcomed locally without exception and seen as a positive signal for Herford as a business location.
The building has a total area of approx. 2,000 m². The new BORA facility will be permanently accessible to visitors as a permanent showroom for BORA and other partners in the interior design industry. Space is currently being created on two levels for the BORA flagship store and showrooms. The 10,000 m² site will feature spacious green areas and interactive experiences. An open space concept with huge windows was chosen. The materials for the interior have been carefully selected. As a carpenter, Willi Bruckbauer has a keen eye for this. It promises to be the perfect setting for high-quality gastronomy. The rental of showrooms to interested partners from various industries creates a comprehensive product and brand experience with culinary highlights for anyone interested in building, living, and interior design.
The building is certainly not ordinary. Not in terms of how it was designed and constructed, nor in terms of the speed and teamwork with which it was realized. The idea behind the design of this impressive building in Herford was the desire to create a building form that had never been seen before. It was clear from the outset that such a project would involve more risks than a conventional building where the different floors are stacked on top of each other as usual. But ‘innovation’ and ‘revolution’ are fixed elements of BORA's DNA – and you can already see that in Herford from afar. Even from a great distance, the appearance of Herford is very special and completely in line with BORA's vision, “The End of Normal.” The innovative architecture and unique appearance show exactly what the company stands for.
Creating pioneering architecture requires not only courage, but also concrete support from the company. As with the locations in Raubling and Niederndorf (Austria), BORA is once again working with the architectural firm LORENZATELIERS from Vienna and Innsbruck in Herford. The team of planners and architects involved in the construction has been kept small. This allows decisions to be made quickly and ensures that the ambitious schedule can be met. After all, the building is set to open in September 2023, just one and a half years after the first stone was laid and just in time for the start of Küchenmeile.
While discussions and coordination with local authorities proceeded smoothly, world events did not pass the project by entirely unnoticed. The biggest challenge for the contractors was the availability of materials, especially the approximately 700 tons of steel required for this project.
The exterior and the overhanging facade are clad with galvanized, perforated plates with holes of varying sizes. This makes it seem as if you are looking up at the starry sky from inside. With this metal cladding, the impressive building resembles an airplane taking off and hovering a few meters above the ground. This is partly due to the filigree steel structure on which the building rests. The sheltered space underneath will accommodate 80 parking spaces. As with the other branches, there will be several electric charging points here.
At BORA, sustainability is a given
The iconic building will be constructed in the middle of a green space. Large parts of the total 10,000 m² site will be landscaped this spring as green space and natural landscape. Bruckbauer considers it important to keep the ecological footprint of his new building low. The building is very energy efficient thanks to the German energy standard KfW 55. The energy required is generated by the photovoltaic modules on the roof. The water from a 200 cubic meter sprinkler basin serves as a storage tank for surplus energy. This is a smart way of heat recovery for the building's low-temperature heating system.
Length: approx. 100 m
Height: approx. 13 m
Construction project area: 2,000 m2
Area of the plot: 10,000 m2
Construction: steel structure with prestressed concrete elements
Facade cladding: galvanized, perforated sheets
Groundbreaking: March 10, 2022
Basement floor ready: early November 2022
Building structure completed: end of December 2022
Reaching the highest point: February 15, 2023
Opening: September 2023
