This new headquarters for Lufthansa in Frankfurt occupies a narrow site bordered on one side by the airport and on the other by both a mainline railway and a motorway. In order to provide some protection from the resulting noise and pollution, while allowing a degree of natural ventilation to the interior, the building is planned as a series of fingers of office space, arranged over seven floors, alternating with full-height winter gardens which provide a buffer between the aggressive world of the exterior and the calm of the internal working environment. The planting in each of the winter gardens is designed to reflect the natural environment of one of Lufthansa's destinations around the world: a nice concept.  A white sandy beach, an Australian outback, a Japanese Zen garden and pools resembling Alpine lakes in northern Italy – the diversity of the gardens symbolizes the international nature of the company. 

All offices have windows opening into the winter gardens and the winter gardens themselves are ventilated with mechanically operated openings at high level. Excessive solar gain or glare is limited by light controlled blinds which shade the inner facades. The atria act as climate buffers, reducing energy consumption throughout the building. The fingers of office space extend from a central spine which provides access to all the office floors via a series of gently curving staircases.

This is a distinguished building that tells both of an ambitious client and an inventive, and determined, architect.