About

A full-service architecture design network in seven locations.

UNStudio, founded in 1988 by Ben van Berkel and Caroline Bos, is an international network specialising in architecture, interior architecture, product design, urban development and infrastructural projects.

With six full-service international offices in Amsterdam, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Frankfurt, Dubai, Melbourne and Austin and over 300 employees from 27 countries, our streamlined structure enables us to spend less time organising and more time designing and collaborating with our clients.

UNStudio’s mission is to design for lasting impact and contribute to the societal challenges of urbanisation, climate change, ageing populations and socioeconomic inequality. Driven by purpose and focused on solutions, we create value by designing for the implications of these megatrends on our built environment. Designs that make our lives healthier, have little impact on the planet, but a lasting impact on our cities - and people.

UNStudio’s current Global Management Team consists of Ben van Berkel, Astrid Piber, Philippe Smit (Managing Director a.i.) and Matthieu Bletgen (CFO) closely supported by a strong Global Leadership Team of long-term Directors and Associate Directors.

Vision

Future-proofing the future

As what we design today is normally built in three to five years’ time, we’re used to working with the future in mind - but that’s changing faster than ever before.

Even the most accurate predictions can be made redundant by a sudden advance in technology or global phenomena.

To ensure we don’t waste materials or make investments that are no longer sustainable or appropriate in today’s world, we develop strategies that not only anticipate the future, but possible changes to that future as well.

UNStudio is also committed to the promotion and practice of sustainable design, with environmental issues like social and ecological sustainability being considered right from the start of a project. And we are dedicated to making every project both financially and socially feasible, a combination that we call ‘attainable design’.

Our sights are set on creating and contributing to a greener, healthier and smarter built environment so that users can focus more on fostering stronger future communities.

We believe that the key to ‘future-proofing the future’ is knowledge. For the last decade, we have focused on expanding our understanding of trends and practices in architecture and beyond.  

That’s why we’ve dedicated our UNSx and UNSFutures teams to researching new forms of culture, methodologies, materials and technology that are reshaping the world.

The results contribute to our mission of producing user-centric designs that are adaptive, resilient and future-proof, whatever the future may bring.

International Project Experience

Collaborating, working and learning on a global scale

More than 30 years of successfully completing projects across Asia, Europe and North America have given us a huge wealth of practical and theoretical experience: what we learn from a project in Singapore, for example, makes it significantly easier to implement the same knowledge in Dubai or London.

Completed projects include the Erasmus Bridge, Arnhem Central Station, the Mercedes-Benz Museum, the Doha Metro Network, Raffles City Hangzhou and the Hanwha HQ Remodelling. We are also working on Southbank by Beulah, Booking.com HQ, wasl Tower, JetBrains’ Office Campus, Hardt Hyperloop and the Brainport Smart District in Helmond.

As we have simultaneously extended our network to include consultants, partners, and advisors across the globe, we are in a position to work efficiently and effectively anywhere in the world.

Here is an overview of our projects.

Improvement and Quality

Internationally approved practices

The research and development of design, data processing, technique and details, processing technical consequences and architectural supervision of UNStudio Van Berkel & Bos BV has been found to conform the Standard NEN-EN-ISO 9001: 2015 since 2001, and ISO 14001: 2015 since 2018.

Corporate values

UNStudio believes in the power of design to influence and bring about change

Our goal is to use our creativity and expertise to design environments which are socially, sustainably, and ethically responsible. We are self-critical as an organization and strive for a just workplace for all.

With over 300 employees across four different continents, UNStudio is committed to taking a human – and planet – centric approach to all our work. Our commitment to creating a more impactful built environment drives us to think unconventionally. From cities to airports, from buildings to bridges, from experiences to brands and products, our teams generate fresh ideas and innovation solutions to some of the most pressing societal issues.

We want to challenge the status quo and collaborate with our clients, partners, industry experts to contribute to a greener, healthier and smarter built environment so that users are enabled to foster stronger future communities.