Athens 2023 | Non-residential

H.C. Andersen’s House

DenmarkDenmarkCompany Name: S. Guldfeldt Nielsen A/S

Project description

Once upon a time, a boy was born in a tiny yellow house in Odense, Denmark. The year was 1805 and the boy was given the name Hans Christian Andersen. From a less than easy childhood, like an ugly duckling turning into a beautiful swan, H.C. Andersen grew up to be one of the most beloved writers the world has ever seen.
In 2022, to commemorate his incredible life, a new museum was built in extension of his childhood home.
The museum, H.C. Andersen’s House, is an architectural masterpiece, designed to interact with the visitors and to guide and draw them into H.C. Andersen’s world of amazing stories and fairy tales.
The museum spaces are composed of a series of circular shapes organized in a non-hierarchical, non-centric manner, which gives the visitors a sense of being lost and disoriented – like in a fairy tale.
The museum is 5.600 m2 and about two thirds of the building is situated underground with parts of the museum garden placed on the rooftop with open access from the street. The team of contractors and Gyproc technical specialists worked closely together in the development of solutions to the challenging constructions both inside and outside.
The project is characterized by cooperation, complexity and great visions. And like in the fairy tales of H.C.Andersen, the parties involved in the project entered unknown territory, met several challenges along the way, found the keys to the right solutions, and ended up being even smarter, stronger, and more skilled than before.

Main information

Building size

5 600 m²

Building purpose / type

Museum

Building owner name

Odense Municipality

Architect name

Main Architect
Kengo Kuma And Associates

Assistant Architect until Jan. 2020
Cornelius Vöge

Contractor

Company name: S. Guldfeldt Nielsen A/S

Main Representative: Mr. Kim Birkerød

Number of collaborators: 276

Specialties: Carpentry and woodwork, All kinds of enterprises

Founded in: 1938

Biography: S. Guldfeldt Nielsen A/S has more than 80 years of experience with carpentry and woodworks in general. The company’s core values are quality and reliability, which are an integrated part of every relation internally and externally. They rely on strong relations with their employees as well as with their customers and partners. S. Guldfeldt Nielsen A/S has a strong sense of community responsibility and always encourage their employees to be innovative in solving the many challenges in the building process.
Their strengths are construction management to insure a high level of professional skill and quality. Always with the customer at the center of focus.

H.C. Andersen’s House S. Guldfeldt Nielsen A/S - Gypsum International Trophy 2023

Contractors: S. Guldfeldt Nielsen A/S

Key Challenges

  • Ventilation system challenged the strength of the walls
  • Internal walls could not be designed to go from floor to ceiling
  • Curved walls – internal as well as external walls – with complex joints and maneuvering room
  • Façade: solving the soil pressure and need for railings as a part of the façade
  • Façade with external stairs: development of new solutions using Gyproc applications

Key Achievements

  • Close collaboration with S. Guldfeldt Nielsen, C&W Architects and Gyproc cleared out technical complex challenges one by one with world-class craftmanship.
  • The internal walls were strengthened with new solutions to make room for the installations beneath floor level and with a 10 cm open gap below the ceiling.
  • The joints between the curved walls are made beautifully and without surface irregularities.
  • Glasroc H Storm (GHSE 9) was used for the external walls with cast-in fiberglass mat, which means that even the strong external walls can be bent.
  • The façade made with new solutions of several Gyproc systems, e.g., using the steel studs in a new way to dam the soil pressure while functioning as a base for the railings at the same time
Contractor’s testimonial
Kim Birkerød, CEO – S. Guldfeldt Nielsen A/S
This building couldn’t be planned in complete detail. Therefore everybody, from apprentices to project managers, had to be a part of the process. A combined effort from the entire team made it possible to build this beautiful building.
Contractor’s testimonial
Morten Rindal, construction manager – S. Guldfeldt Nielsen A/S
The professional and “out of the box” thinking from our Gyproc partners made it possible for us to make these intricate and beautiful solutions, which makes this building so fascinating.
Architect’s testimonial
Kengo Kuma And Associates
We were very much influenced by him (H.C. Andersen, ed.) and actually we learned the secret of space from him

Saint-Gobain products & systems

Benefits
Exterior wall
Façade made with new solutions of several Gyproc systems
Superior aesthetic and design
Architectural masterpiece, designed to interact with the visitors
Environmentally friendly
Gyproc steel studs were cut to exact measurements, which is a more environmentally friendly solution as it produces less waste
Allows curved design
All internal and external walls are curved
Inspiring spaces
Visitors are drawn into H.C. Andersen’s fairy tales with a sense of being lost and disoriented
Productivity gain
Gyproc steel studs were cut to exact measurements. This made the assembly easier and less complicated and spared the craftsmen physically
Robustness guarantee
Reinforcement steel studs in internal and external walls
Energy efficiency
Sustainable insulation of roof, walls and technical installations
Fire protection
Stairs made with Glasroc FireCase above and beneath every stair step
H1
Highest class for moisture absorption using e.g.

Saint-Gobain Team

Helene Kofoed-Pihl, Per Leerberg

Photographer’s name

Laerke Beck Johansen, Museum Odense