Transformation of Billund continues with LEGO Campus opening

The LEGO Group has opened the first phase of its new campus, bringing the first hint of a Silicon Valley style workplace to Billund, Denmark.

Four years after planning began, the first phase of the LEGO Campus officially opened today in Billund, Denmark. The new buildings, designed by C.F. Møller Architects, are the first part of the campus that will cover 54,000 square metres and provide workspace for 2,000 employees. It is scheduled to be completed in 2021.

While employees have started to move in over the past few weeks, today saw the official opening of the first section. The new bespoke building is something very different to the standard building that existed before, with the architects briefed to express the LEGO Group’s core values: “imagination, creativity, fun, learning, caring and quality.”

The new building was inspired by a painting in LEGO owner Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen’s office, with the architects encouraged to opt for a playful design. They have incorporated giant LEGO bricks into the walls of the building and designed an entrance made of bricks.

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“It’s wonderful to see these first two buildings open,” says Niels B. Christiansen, LEGO Group CEO. “The team has worked hard to create a workspace that reflects our values and instils a sense of fun. Our mission is to inspire children so it’s important we provide our talented colleagues with an environment that is playful and inspires creativity and innovative thinking. Building this special environment has been a massive collaborative effort and I would like to thank everyone who has contributed.”

“In the same way you build with LEGO bricks, we took elements our people love and brought them all together to create something unique,” says , Anneke Beerkens, Senior Workplace Anthropologist at the LEGO Group. “For example, employees told us that they wanted the freedom to choose an environment that suited them best for whatever they were working on, but also liked to stay close to teammates. So we built team ‘neighbourhoods’ which are a mix of individual and collaborative workspaces designed to create a caring environment where people can do great quality work.”

Eight buildings will make up the campus, with two already housing around 500 employees.

Sustainability has been taken into consideration, with the new parking garage utilising 4,150 solar panels to produce more than 1 million kWh, enough energy for half of the campus. The new buildings have Sedum plants on the roof, which absorb water and CO2.

Inside the building, a special gypsum fibre board material was used rather than standard materials as it requires less steel framing, which the LEGO Group reports saved 22 tons of steel and 650 tons CO2 emissions.

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Author Profile

Graham
Graham was the BrickFanatics.com Editor up until November 2020. He has plenty of experience working on LEGO related projects. He has contributed to various websites and publications on topics including niche hobbies, the toy industry and education.

Follw Graham on Twitter @grahamh100.

Graham

Graham was the BrickFanatics.com Editor up until November 2020. He has plenty of experience working on LEGO related projects. He has contributed to various websites and publications on topics including niche hobbies, the toy industry and education. Follw Graham on Twitter @grahamh100.

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