Honorable Mention: International Architecture Awards 2022
Climatorium Climate Centre | Lemvig, Denmark | 2020

Architects: 3XN A/S
Landscape Architects: SLA Architects
General Contractor: WSP
Client: Lemvig Vand & Spildevand og Lemvig
Photographers: Adam Mørk

CLIMATORIUM CLIMATE CENTRE by 3XN The Klimatorium, Denmark’s international climate centre in Lemvig, opened in 2020 combining rustic and pragmatic architecture with local nature design and integrated flood protection. The new Climate centre offers an innovative and creative mini-hub for storm surge, water and climate research. The design is based on Lemvig’s historic boat-building facilities found in the spectacular natural scenery of the Limfjord and the strong communities of the port.

The main architectural concept is pragmatic, and materials have been kept in wood, concrete and steel. The symbol of the building is a wooden ‘wave’ that rises above the main entrance and makes the building an easily recognisable landmark. This motif is inspired by Lemvig’s characteristic fishing boats and is a tribute to the area's cultural history and local building customs. But the wave also refers to the serious challenges we face as a result of climate change." “The tiled wave made of wood gives the building a strong identity.

Both inside and out, it becomes a gathering point and social meeting place for Klimatorium employees and guests as well as the people of Lemvig,” says Jan Ammundsen, architect and senior partner at 3XN. The floating structure and use of glass give the Klimatorium a distinct contemporary look. The building has two levels and has in terms of scale been adapted to fit in with the existing buildings in the port area. The first floor is surrounded by black-stained wooden slats, which give the building a simple and rustic look and protect it against direct sunlight.

Inside, the Klimatorium offers office spaces, meeting rooms, common areas and a publicly accessible café and exhibition area that focus on creating social synergies by encouraging users of the building to engage in different kinds of interaction, meetings and collaboration. Visual contact, a flexible framework, attractive meeting points, overlapping functions and activity-based design all contribute to reinforcing social relations within the building as well as promoting community and innovation The Klimatorium highlights the development of the Port of Lemvig from commercial port to one of Denmark’s most impressive experience ports while the extensive and integrated flood protection of the port is finally completed.

Key to this is the project’s landscape and nature design: the Green Climate Corridor. The Climate Corridor is partly an ‘expo landscape’ for users of the Klimatorium and partly a public green urban space with a pleasant microclimate and diverse outdoor urban life options for everyone. Facts: The Klimatorium is Denmark’s international climate centre located in Lemvig on the west coast of Denmark. The Klimatorium brings together civil society, government authorities, businesses and educational establishments for debate, research and innovation on lifestyle, prevention and adaptation to the climate challenges we face.

The mission of the Klimatorium is to develop and describe new solutions to challenges in the following areas: Coastal Climate Challenges, Green Energy, Circular Economy, Water and Environment. The Klimatorium is part of the Coast-to-Coast Climate Challenge. A climate change adaptation project led by the Central Jutland Region is supported by the LIFE programme and consists of collaboration across sectors and partners. Klimatorium is designed by 3XN in partnership with SLA (outdoor design and integrated flood protection) and Orbicon (engineering and technical consultant). In 2018 the team was appointed winner of the international competition.