ISG | Business & Economics School

An office building reinvented as a business school

The project involves the rehabilitation and interior adaptation of a 1970s office building, comprising four floors including a basement level, to accommodate a higher education institution. The proposal adapts the existing structure to a new functional program, ensuring spatial clarity, functional legibility and an appropriate scale for the different uses.

staircase as an element of spatial and light articulation
a reading area defined by natural light streaming in from the double-height ceiling
entrance space

The program is distributed across the building, with more intensive and shared functions located on the ground and basement levels, while the upper floors are reserved for activities requiring greater concentration, such as classrooms, lecture halls and administration. The intervention enhances common spaces and vertical circulation, introducing double-height areas that bring natural light into the lower levels, representing one of the project’s key architectural gestures.

cafe area lit by natural light from the upper floor and with a clear view of the reception area
workspaces defined by glazed partitions
library and offices (visual communication between different programs)

In Benfica, a 1970s building transforms into a contemporary campus, where architecture shapes the education of the future.

Client
Ensinus – Estudos Superiores, S.A.
Year
2022
Status
Done
Address
Rua Prof. Reinaldo dos Santos nº46, Lisboa, Portugal
Architecture
André Ferreira, Joana Castanheira
Team
Miguel Almeida, Filipa Roma, Francisca Coelho
Construction area
1600sqm
Engineering
LNM – Engenharia Civil, Lda; Graucelsius – Consultores de Engenharia, Gestão e Planeamento, Lda
Constructor
Grandatlas Construções, S.A.
Photography
Lourenço Teixeira de Abreu
facade of the existing building (with no design changes other than the installation of the wall with lettering on the ground floor)

Projects that balance technical rigor, function and place.

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