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O&K Moeckernstrasse
O&K Moeckernstrasse
Berlin, Germany
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Other Projects by CLUB MARGINAL ARCHITEKTEN
O&K Moeckernstrasse
Berlin, Germany
Type
STATUS
Built
YEAR
2022
SIZE
25,000 sqft - 100,000 sqft
BUDGET
$1M - 5M
© Photos: Waldemar Salesski
Located on the edge of Kreuzberg, in the immediate vicinity of the Park am Gleisdreieck and
Landwehrkanal, is the former headquarters of Ohrenstein und Koppel, or O&K for short. The
mechanical engineering company was founded in 1876 by Benno Orenstein and Artur
Koppel in Schlachtensee near Berlin.
Initially, the company produced light railway equipment and tipper trucks, later railways,
construction machinery, escalators and ships. The network of production sites stretched
across the whole of Europe and several other continents. In 1886, a plot of land was acquired
on Tempelhofer Ufer, which was successively built on to house the headquarters of the
rapidly growing industrial group. In 1913, O&K had a dozen factories and almost a hundred
branches worldwide, employing nearly 15,000 people. The administrative building at
Conversion and refurbishment of a historic office building in Kreuzberg
Möckernstraße 120, which is now a listed building, dates from this period of economic
prosperity. It was built in 1909-1910 according to the plans of the Berlin architectural firm
Cremer & Wolffenstein.
In contrast to the classically structured façades - clad with tuff towards the street and glazed
clinker in the courtyard - the internal structure consists of a then modern construction.
Instead of a massive central wall, only two continuous iron columns support the ceilings of
the front building. This created one large contiguous room per floor, which is still
characteristic of the building's spatial structure today.
The goal of the extensive renovation and conversion measures, which will be completed in
2022, was to preserve and leave visible both the original charm from the time of origin and
the layers of time from the building's more than one hundred-year history that were added
later. At the same time, a contemporary utilisation concept was developed for the building
that combines flexibly divisible office and exhibition space.
The existing courtyard ceiling was demolished and the entire basement lowered by means of
underpinning using the jet grouting method so that the newly created rooms have sufficient
room height. Additional usable space was thus created on the property, which was originally
already fully developed. A newly added extension in the courtyard, with its smooth façade of
exposed concrete, contrasts with the historic wall surfaces of the existing building and zones
the inner courtyard on two different levels, which are now connected to each other by a bright
steel staircase.
The underground car park is accessed via a newly installed car lift, whose retractable gate
has been inconspicuously integrated into the listed façade.
In the rear part of the building, an additional escape staircase was built for fire protection
reasons. A passenger lift was added to the existing historic staircase, which now makes the
entire building handicapped accessible. Both the lift and the entrance doors to the individual
floors were covered with heavy architectural bronze, a classic material that is intended to
associate continuity and the continuation of the building's history and was also used in other
parts of the building.
The staircase to the basement was also rebuilt, with a wrought-iron banister that was
modelled on the historic structure. In addition to the entire building technology and all floors,
windows and doors were also renewed, in part closely based on the historical model. Patina
and traces of the past on wall and ceiling surfaces were deliberately preserved or carefully
added.
Located on the edge of Kreuzberg, in the immediate vicinity of the Park am Gleisdreieck and
Landwehrkanal, is the former headquarters of Ohrenstein und Koppel, or O&K for short. The
mechanical engineering company was founded in 1876 by Benno Orenstein and Artur
Koppel in Schlachtensee near Berlin.
Initially, the company produced light railway equipment and tipper trucks, later railways,
construction machinery, escalators and ships. The network of production sites stretched
across the whole of Europe and several other continents. In 1886, a plot of land was acquired
on Tempelhofer Ufer, which was successively built on to house the headquarters of the
rapidly growing industrial group. In 1913, O&K had a dozen factories and almost a hundred
branches worldwide, employing nearly 15,000 people. The administrative building at
Conversion and refurbishment of a historic office building in Kreuzberg
Möckernstraße 120, which is now a listed building, dates from this period of economic
prosperity. It was built in 1909-1910 according to the plans of the Berlin architectural firm
Cremer & Wolffenstein.
In contrast to the classically structured façades - clad with tuff towards the street and glazed
clinker in the courtyard - the internal structure consists of a then modern construction.
Instead of a massive central wall, only two continuous iron columns support the ceilings of
the front building. This created one large contiguous room per floor, which is still
characteristic of the building's spatial structure today.
The goal of the extensive renovation and conversion measures, which will be completed in
2022, was to preserve and leave visible both the original charm from the time of origin and
the layers of time from the building's more than one hundred-year history that were added
later. At the same time, a contemporary utilisation concept was developed for the building
that combines flexibly divisible office and exhibition space.
The existing courtyard ceiling was demolished and the entire basement lowered by means of
underpinning using the jet grouting method so that the newly created rooms have sufficient
room height. Additional usable space was thus created on the property, which was originally
already fully developed. A newly added extension in the courtyard, with its smooth façade of
exposed concrete, contrasts with the historic wall surfaces of the existing building and zones
the inner courtyard on two different levels, which are now connected to each other by a bright
steel staircase.
The underground car park is accessed via a newly installed car lift, whose retractable gate
has been inconspicuously integrated into the listed façade.
In the rear part of the building, an additional escape staircase was built for fire protection
reasons. A passenger lift was added to the existing historic staircase, which now makes the
entire building handicapped accessible. Both the lift and the entrance doors to the individual
floors were covered with heavy architectural bronze, a classic material that is intended to
associate continuity and the continuation of the building's history and was also used in other
parts of the building.
The staircase to the basement was also rebuilt, with a wrought-iron banister that was
modelled on the historic structure. In addition to the entire building technology and all floors,
windows and doors were also renewed, in part closely based on the historical model. Patina
and traces of the past on wall and ceiling surfaces were deliberately preserved or carefully
added.
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