Meet A-lab
Welcome to A-lab!
A-lab is all about collaboration. It is about designing good processes where the best results are guaranteed by groups of different people with ambitions, creative enthusiasm and a desire to build something together. The good and including processes are what gives a sense of ownership and commitment, and it is crucial to find the X-factor in both the people and the project.
Limitless
It is no coincidence that we call ourselves a laboratory. When our two founding partners Odd Klev and Geir Haaversen created A-lab, it came as an urge to go beyond a traditional way of looking at architecture. Ever since they have encouraged all of the employees and collaborating partners to think beyond obvious solutions.
Social
We cherish the A-lab culture. Being 120 people from 20 different nations spread at offices in Oslo, Portugal and Denmark, creates a unique culture that is the driving force of A-lab.
Competences
We are organized in areas of competences that reflects the different fields we work within. Urbanism (urban planning and landscape), Offices (commercial buildings), Ground Floor (outdoor/indoor ground floor), Housing, Hotels, Student Housing, Culture (communal institutions), all supported by Landscape, Sustainability and Technological (visualization, technology and model making) exspertice.
Ideas
Behind every project there has been a free flowing exchange of ideas. Everyone in each of our teams is encouraged to take part in the design process, sharing their unique perspective to push the projects in new and unforeseen directions every time.
Community living
Designing new cities is about understanding social dynamics to be able to create functional urban areas and living spaces.
Scale
Every scale is fascinating. It is all about using our design methodology to firstly map out the challenges and obstacles, then work out in collaboration with clients and user groups the best solution to improve quality of life.
Retrospect
Architecture is a field in constant flux. As a laboratory we follow up our projects after completion to reflect and evaluate the dialog between social dynamics, natural conditions and constructions.
Model Making
With our own model workshop and skilled model makers, we use the models as a strong tool in communicating internally and externally everything from the impact of volumes, lighting conditions to spatial qualities.
Technology
Our tech team collaborates externally with the latest and most up to date innovation hubs. Technology is a driving force behind our architectural communication.
Materiality
Our material laboratory is constantly growing as we dive into material field innovation.
Curiosity
It’s our eagerness to learn that drives us to create something new.
Regenerative
We design the built environment with focus on creating vibrant communities, working with climate, enhancing natural systems, and reducing emissions through decarbonized design.
The bigger picture
In the development of cities we think about the bigger picture and collaborate with politicians to create better solutions that makes a real difference in society.
Interdiciplinary
We are a group of architects, urban planners, landscape architects, interior designers, tech workers and social scientists who push for innovation, value creation and development of new knowledge, in search of making better cities.
Office
It doesn’t matter what kind of field of expertise the different employees have, we all engage in every phase of the design process.
A-lab international
We are looking abroad. A few years ago we opened a branch in Portugal and have now an address in Paris. With our competence based in the Scandinavian model we have a lot to contribute internationally.
Colors
We are advocates for using colors in architecture and have built up in house color expertise in the field. We strongly believe in sharing our knowledge with everyone from students to developers.
User involvement
To be able to create sustainable and functional urban spaces it is imminent to involve existing and potential new inhabitants in the area of development.
Research
As a laboratory we spend a lot of our internal resources to do research. We are also collaborating partners in public research programs.
