2017

Zurich

United Arab Emirates

The opening of Swiss Re Next in autumn 2017 marked a major milestone towards completing the longer-term project Swiss Re Campus Mythenquai. The new office building, with its remarkable façade made of undulated glass panels, provides 800 workspaces for 1100 employees. It fulfills ambitious sustainability requirements and is operating fully on electricity derived from renewable sources.

Swiss Re's head office, known as the "Altbau" at Mythenquai 60 was built in 1913. In the late 1960s an additional building was erected by its side at Mythenquai 50, then known as "Neubau." In those days, the company had around 600 employees – still far from today's Swiss-based workforce of more than 3000. The Neubau no longer satisfied Swiss Re's ideas for a modern working environment. After thorough consideration, Swiss Re decided to demolish the building and create a new one on this site.

For the project, Diener & Diener Architects and Proplaning formed a planning partnership. Since the lakeside subsoil is unstable and Swiss Re Next stands even taller above ground than the previous structure, the overall construction was very complex. The construction site at Mythenquai was situated in a critical location in terms of traffic, which led to many logistical challenges as well. From planning to execution, over a hundred companies were involved over the period of ten years.

The next step in Swiss Re's Campus Mythenquai project will be the replacement of the existing structure at Mythenquai 20–28, known as "Mythenschloss," with a state-of-the-art office building. Completion is expected by the mid-2020s, ultimately allowing Swiss Re to transfer all Swiss-based employees to the campus with its six interlinked buildings.

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