Walking in through the entrance of the Experimentarium by architecture firm CEBRA, visitors can immediately take notice of the radiating copper Helix staircase. The Helix staircase is 100 meters long, supported with 160 tons of steel and clad and 10 tons of 7mm thick copper.
Both formally and through material choice, the stair invokes a feeling of science. The DNA strand idea was proposed during a workshop with Jakob Bohr, a professor at DTU Nanotech, and was abstracted into the constructed Helix.
Functionally, the stair creates a distinct and sinuous experience from floor to floor connecting four floors, allowing continuous circulations between the project’s various programs -- exhibitions, a cafe, convention center, teaching facilities and staff facilities that have a visual connection to the visitor areas, as spaces for workshops. To address the visitors of all ages, the handrail detail includes a high and a low recess for adults and children.
The complexity of the structural systems used at the Experimentarium is not apparent at first glance. Primarily built of prefabricated elements, with floor structures made of voided slabs and load-bearing concrete resting on girders, steels, and concrete columns. In some places, to reduce the number of columns, the floors are hung from above. This is how the main entrance is able to be column free and allow the Helix stair to become a sculptural object in space.
News via CEBRA.