Two major projects commissioned by the Mercedes Benz Group (formerly Daimler AG) and Daimler Truck will create approximately 6,400 workplaces in Vaihingen and Leinfelden-Echterdingen. The impetus: the IPO of Daimler Truck Holding AG. Despite their different contexts, both projects draw from a shared architectural toolkit designed by O&O Baukunst: a podium housing shared and public functions anchors the design, with office floors built from modular components above. This ground-level base establishes a civic presence in the urban landscape while accommodating diverse uses—from foyers and exhibition spaces to cafés and company restaurants, meeting areas, wellness and medical centers, a bicycle garage, and an on-site kindergarten. H-shaped upper floors maximize natural light through expansive glazing, creating bright, unobstructed office spaces up to 800 m² in area. These column-free halls adapt easily to whatever workplace configurations a company requires.

The buildings' construction reveals itself in the fully prefabricated façade as an expansive white grid that anchors the entire composition. Ventilation flaps frame the fixed glazing on either side. Inside the multi-story circulation halls positioned between the office spaces, a steel bridge structure takes center stage—elevators and stairs are freely positioned, while the entrance hall spans uninterrupted by columns. The aesthetic philosophy is one of honest expression: exposed building systems, visible concrete walls and ceilings, screed floors, and painted steel structures in grey and white tones create a dynamic material conversation. Acoustically effective oak paneling rounds out the palette.

The Daimler Truck Campus in Leinfelden occupies a diverse urban context: commercial development to the north, mixed-use residential and commercial neighborhoods to the south. With no public street frontage on its western and eastern edges—only a pedestrian and regional cycle path along the railway line—the building responds through a series of four interconnected courtyards. Each courtyard engages its surroundings differently, presenting an office campus that weaves into the fabric around it. A central, elongated courtyard serves as the campus's primary address, welcoming visitors and transit-dependent employees directly to the main entrance. An outdoor dining area extends from the company restaurant, inviting lingering. To the west, direct access connects to the regional cycle network along the railway, where cyclists encounter a dedicated bike station. The eastern courtyard, facing the adjacent commercial area, handles deliveries and logistics. The southern courtyard opens as a terraced garden retreat—a quieter sanctuary for staff and visitors, supported by café service from the lobby. All four courtyards converge and culminate in a central 1,500 m² hall reaching up to 8 meters high. With its distinctive steel structure, this grand industrial-style hall anchors the campus as the heart of the company, uniting all shared functions under one roof.

www.ortner-ortner.com

Photography Credits:

O&O Baukunst/Brigida González
www.brigidagonzalez.de

(Featured in CUBE Stuttgart 03|22)