Hamburg’s Office for Urban Development and the Environment has recently unveiled this colourful and energy-efficient office, set for completion in 2013.

The concept of the building is ‘seven houses’, which are contained within the high rise unit and two wings. The rainbow colour scheme references the importance of the number seven in the design of this building.

This building follows a common contemporary architectural theme by making the space suitable for multiple uses, with the ground floor featuring exhibition spaces, restaurants, an amphitheater, a library, and a conference centre, as well as plenty of office space on the floors above. The glass facade creates well-distributed natural light, but is also thermally insulated to protect the interior from intense sunlight and insulate during the colder months.

The building has access to gas power, but mainly sources its energy from photovoltaic panels and geothermal energy to minimize energy consumption.