The project by Yemail Arquitectura goes beyond its utilitarian function, conceiving it as a social infrastructure whose spatial flexibility allows it to adapt to diverse configurations and uses over time, ensuring functional performance and key resilience in the face of future transformations.
Innovation Labs is an example of architecture that functions as a meeting point for diverse audiences and as a catalyst for interaction. Its exposed metal structure, fused with different stone surfaces, creates a transition between spaces, creating a key material language that not only meets technical and tactile criteria but also gives the project a distinctive identity within the campus.
Innovation Laboratories by Yemail Arquitectura. Photograph by Bé Estudio.
Innovation Laboratories by Yemail Arquitectura. Photograph by Bé Estudio.
Project description by Yemail Arquitectura
The Innovation Laboratories project is conceived as a hybrid infrastructure that integrates academic and business use, with a social focus aimed at creating spaces for creativity. It is located on the campus of a university on the outskirts of Bogotá. Its spatial strategy is based on the repetition of a trapezoidal section, which generates a large metal roof, the structural rhythm of which organizes both the main spaces and the circulation areas.
The geometry of the roof responds to two demands: environmental and functional. The sawtooth profile allows for efficient natural light entry, with the skylight over the central void being its most emblematic feature. This strategy enables generous and controlled lighting, taking advantage of the orientation and the specific climatic conditions of the environment.
The building is articulated through an internal street that connects two key points of the campus, transforming what could have been a simple pedestrian passage into an axis that activates diverse experiences. This main circulation links double-height spaces with informal recreation areas, transcending the purely educational to foster interdisciplinary and collaborative encounters.
Vertical connections are resolved with a large atrium-style staircase, which not only serves as a circulation element but also becomes a space for exchange and interaction. This architectural gesture is framed by a generous window, oriented towards the mountainous landscape to the east, establishing a constant dialogue between the educational interior and its natural context.
The building’s circulation pathways offer moments of discovery and contemplation. Along the routes, there are spaces for unconventional activities, such as games, lounge chairs for resting, and even sheltered areas where one can lie down or walk barefoot.
The project’s materiality combines exposed steel structure, stone surfaces on the floors, and a characteristic wine-red color that links the transitional elements between spaces. This material language not only responds to technical criteria and the pursuit of tactile richness (despite using industrialized materials), but it also gives the building a distinctive identity within the campus.
The project goes beyond its utilitarian function by being conceived as a piece of social infrastructure, where architecture becomes a catalyst for interactions and a meeting point for diverse audiences. The flexibility of its spaces and devices allows it to adapt to various configurations and uses over time, ensuring functional performance and resilience to future transformations brought about by unexpected activities within the building.
