Parc Recerca Biomedica Barcelona (PRBB)
Biomedical Research Park of Barcelona, Spain



Architect
Manuel Brullet i Tenas and Albert de Pineda i Àlvarez
Date Built
Completed 2006
Location
Barcelona seafront, next to the Hospital del Mar.
Description
The architects of this building say that they proposed, "... a large platform that arranged the site which was quite irregular. The placing of a building raised in the form of a trunk with an elliptical cone, cut diagonally, has enabled us to organise the setting and relate calmly with the nearby volumes. The elliptical shape arises from the need to adapt a very large building (some 35,000 m2 above ground level) on a very tight-fitting site, irregular in shape and with different surrounding volumes."



"The construction was planned necessarily compact in order to adapt to the site, but scales down towards the sea, softening the seafront and adapting to the buildings of the promenade, which in this part are low in height. At the back, on the side facing the city, it was decided to raise the building since it had sufficient space. This staggered form towards the sea enables solar plaques to be placed on the roof to produce hot water and electricity."



"The covering of the façade was planned in light, wooden openwork, without touching the ground; the aim is to take away weight in a building which for its compact and unitary conception is large in size. This second skin must enable good light and energy control of the building."



The Biomedical Park is home to six public research centres and is the result of an initiative launched by the Government of Catalonia, the City Council of Barcelona and the Pompeu Fabra University.  Apparently, 1400 people are employed in the PRBB making it one of the largest biomedical research centres in Europe.