A Nest Above the Metropolis
Frankfurt am Main truly has no shortage of vertical landmarks – Helmut Jahn's Messeturm and BIG's new Omniturm are just two examples. The latest addition is a high-rise with a hybrid usage: located in the Westend district, the "One Forty West" is not only an eye-catcher in this metropolis on the Main river, but with its 145-metre height it's also part of the so-called Senckenberg Quarter, an ensemble of three staggered towers that marks the southern section of the "Kulturcampus". The design of this tower goes back to an international competition for the redevelopment of the area, which was won by the Frankfurt office Moser Assoziierte Architekten in 2016 under the then company name cma cyrusmoser architekten.
"One Forty West" has apartments as well as a hotel: the Melia Hotel, for example, is located on the first 23 floors – four-star accommodation with 236 rooms and suites as well as 149 apartments, the interiors of which were designed by the Ippolito Fleitz Group. The 187 apartments are located above the hotel, from the 24th to the 40th floor, and range in size from 50 to 140 square metres. In addition, various public areas such as a sky bar and a restaurant are also part of the concept. "We wanted to create a lively antipole to office towers in which the sound of air conditioning is the only sign of life after work. There is life in our hybrid tower both during the day and at night," says architect Andreas Moser about the building's spatial layout.
The high quality of the apartments at "One Forty West" can be seen, among other things, in a model apartment created by designer Sebastian Herkner. "It reminds me of a comfortable nest above the metropolis," Herkner says of his design. "My fictional resident is someone who may still live somewhere else but works in Frankfurt, who orders something from the concierge on the way up after work and then ends the day with a glass of wine on his or her balcony." The intention to create apartments with real style extends to the switches, for which the designer chose the "Berker Q.3" switch range from Berker. With their clear contours and flat switching angles, they not only blend into the overall ambience perfectly, but offer a pleasurable feel as well. And as they have the necessary seals, they are IP-44-capable, which makes them the right choice for splash-proof applications both outdoors and in damp rooms. Finally, a metering system from Hager measures consumption per floor in the individual residential units. As a modular technology system equipped with intelligent meters, the system ensures the apartments in "One Forty West" not only have a pleasant ambience, but also a consistent energy supply that ensures they stay this way.
