A Place To (Esbjerg Towers) is a complex of three residential buildings, located between the university and the city centre on the coast of Esbjerg, Denmark. Near the buildings there are numerous sports facilities, Tovværk Park, a secondary school, and several apartment blocks with courtyards, built in the 1950s. All this makes Esbjerg Towers an ideal location for student housing.
The buildings were erected on elevations specially designed according to local regulations to adapt to street level. Communication routes and facilities for recreation and relaxation have been designed around the buildings. The three skyscrapers offer a total of 350 student apartments, 100 hotel apartments and common areas with service premises (laundry, cafes, shops, etc.).
Each of the buildings was built on a hexagonal plan, in which the architects from Bjarke Ingels Group rotated every other balcony (while keeping the core of the mass with the staircase in place), thus obtaining a characteristic building profile (like a cactus) and a variety of spacious balconies. The result is a multitude of residential units with beautiful views of the surrounding nature, the city centre and the sea.
The buildings were glazed using Pilkington Insulight™ Sun Triple insulating glazing units. Two types of solar control glass Pilkington Suncool™ 66/33 and Pilkington Suncool™ 50/25 in both toughened and annealed versions provided thermal comfort. The use of laminated Pilkington Optilam™ Therm S3 and Pilkington Optitherm™ SI3 low-emissivity products, increased thermal insulation of insulating glass units. Such glass combination of triple insulating glass units allows to reduce the level of energy consumption necessary to cool interiors during summertime and heat buildings during the colder months of the year. High light transmittance ensures unobstructed observation of the surrounding landscape through the windows.
To reduce the operating costs of buildings and improve the comfort of residents, argon and a warm TGI®-Spacer were used in the spaces between the glass panes, which reduces heat loss at the edges of the insulating glass unit and improves the insulation of the entire window.