Mashhad CEO Headquarters

A giant, structural void featuring a node-looking passage defines this 14,200-sqm development in the city of Mashhad, Iran. Home to Mashhad Construction Engineering, the Mashhad CEO Headquarters is set to be a place where engineers can comfortably meet and interact with each other.

There are two key design challenges offered by the project – urban issue as an exterior argument and the spatial organization that must be anchored on particular spaces of the project.

As a believer that some spaces are “more important” than others, the designers emphasize on the public hall where applicants can process technical documents and certifications, and the amphitheater that can accommodate conferences, events, and seminars relating to construction engineering.

Hence, the solution was to place its public and congregational spaces as close to ground level, particularly the basement, ground floor, and the first floor. Furthermore, these spaces were directly connected to the void as well as the existing urban space of the vicinity.

A muted, louvered entrance punctured by a huge concave void defines the exteriors of the Mashhad CEO Headquarters. Inspired by traditional Iranian constructions, this structural void not only generates the rest of its building morphology throughout the interiors but also defines access that connects two streets across each other.

Because of its visually-defining form, a solid configuration that matches its strong yet partially hollow façade initiated free-flowing pedestrian access throughout the complex. Inside, spaces are designed with the same prioritization of certain spaces. In fact, its public and congregational spaces such as the documents approval hall and the amphitheater feature direct interconnected passages that emerge from the void itself for optimum access.

With the goal of enhancing the public character of its surrounding public space all the while fulfilling its spatial duties, the Mashhad CEO Headquarters combines the qualities of dynamic urban space and a well-thought interior space that comes into a single architectural solution of an imposing yet functional structural void.