Russia's first building with a COR-TEN steel facade has arrived.

It's the Ferrum Business Center in St. Petersburg, built on the site of the former Rossiya machine-building plant.

So what's so special about this material? It's a composite alloy that is highly corrosion-resistant and extremely strong, which is why it's also called "eternal" steel.

It has a velvety texture and a distinctive rusty-red patina. The secret is that its dense oxide film (the rust) acts as a protective shell that keeps water from penetrating any deeper into the metal. Weather resistance matters all the more in St. Petersburg's climate.

Interestingly, the patina doesn't appear right away but develops over the course of use, which means the building's look changes over time. There are even special treatments for creating the oxide film in a controlled way.

To give the office building's plain rectangular volume a distinctive look, the architects alternated flat and protruding steel modules, creating the illusion of weaving wrapped around a glass base. It looks like either the floating threads of a woven "warp and weft" fabric or a basket made of birch bark.

The Ferrum BC is just one part of a large-scale redevelopment of the industrial area. For instance, there's already a building dedicated to the theatrical work of the artist Alexandre Benois, known from Diaghilev's "Ballets Russes."

The designs were developed by the architecture firm TCHOBAN VOSS Architekten.

When it's +33℃ in Moscow (like right now) and you still have to go to the office, you want it to look like this.

It turns out the workplace solutions made for tropical climates suit us pretty well too.

You have to head into the office, and you want it to look like this.

What's the trick?

First, effective shading from the sun's slanting rays, thanks to projecting boxes of wooden slats across the façade. Second, a move away from rigid structures and toward open-air space for greenery. And third, an abundance of plants that make the façade look interesting not only from the outside but also from the inside.

A wooden office in Olgino, St. Petersburg.

This three-story, elongated building is built on 12 wooden frames, with a total area of 1,200 m².

The finishes use wood and brick. The long side walls are clad in brick with an interesting technique: part of the masonry runs traditionally horizontal and part is oriented vertically, with the blocks alternating in a staggered pattern. The main facade is fully glazed, and almost all of the interior partitions are glass too, creating a sense of openness and welcome.

The architects — the Conifer studio.

How do you build a new commercial building while keeping the character of the old city?

This project highlights the preserved historic facade, in keeping with the style and scale of the surrounding buildings. The new structure tries to stay out of the spotlight: the architecture is functional, and the fiber-cement cladding is Swisspearl Largo in soft colors. It's deliberately understated so that the facade preserved in front of it stands out and keeps the traditional character of the street.

The Blumenthal Building office complex in São Paulo, Brazil. Architects: Kruchin Arquitetura.

A nominee in the «Office Buildings» and «Renovation» categories at ArchDaily’s 2021 Building of the Year Awards.

An office building in Lisbon that houses the headquarters of GS1 Portugal, a company that implements identification systems (including QR codes).

This is a reconstruction of a 1980s building — one of the first in Portugal built specifically for business use (photo below). The renovation was designed by the architecture firm PROMONTORIO.

The new building reuses the existing concrete structure, but the façade itself is a play of angled concrete slabs and glass panels. Depending on the angle you look from, you get a new look every time, and it also protects the building from overheating. A bas-relief by the street artist Vhils adds a touch of originality.

Photos by Fernando Guerra, FG+SG.