Culture and identity brought to life

DFDS Headquarters

Client: PensionDanmark (owner) & DFDS (tenant)

Location: Copenhagen, Denmark

Area: 15,500 m²

Workstations: 560

DFDS headquarters brings the company’s vibrant culture to life and strengthens its maritime identity. Moreover, it facilitates customer-oriented activities and events, providing an enriching DFDS experience for employees, visitors, and partners. It’s a building that exudes DFDS in every way, showcasing how corporate identity and culture can integrate seamlessly into the built environment and workplace strategy.

01 Gallery

02Introduction

Discipline

Architecture

Strategic Advisory

Typology

Corporate & HQ

Workplace Strategy & Design

Status

Completed

Certification

DGNB Gold

Collaborators

NCC Landskab Vesterholt

03Quote

It has been a pleasure, together with DFDS, to focus on such high sustainability goals. We have drawn on our expertise and extensive experience from other projects, so that today there stands a truly unique headquarters.

Søren Mølbak, Partner & CEO, PLH

04Summary

Ambition to express identity

For their new HQ, iconic shipping company DFDS envisioned a building that could express its history, values, and culture, while aligning with the services and products it offers.

Buildings and interior is a way to express identity

Alignment in all aspects is key for any company when communicating its identity to the world. This entails the company’s buildings, including the interior experiences, as well.

Rooted in identity but fit for the future

In designing the new HQ, PLH helped translate the identity of DFDS into a physical space. Looking at the building, one instantly senses the maritime references - the façade alluding to the movement of water and the floor plan echoing the layout of the company’s iconic passenger ferries. This connection carries on inside, with every floor full of exciting destinations, features, and experiences that inspire people to innovate, collaborate, and develop new ideas. From top to bottom, it’s a workplace designed for the future of work.

05Auditorium

DFDS’ multifunctional room is designed to accommodate multiple purposes. For example it can serve as an auditorium for big meetings with seating for employees.

But it can also function as a room for employees’ fitness clubs, with the collapsible seating packed away into the wall. A space made to adapt to various needs throughout the day.

06In their words

With an ambition to be climate neutral by 2050, it was crucial for us that our new construction matched the highest sustainability standards. It is about environmentally friendly quality materials, indoor climate and energy consumption. For example, we have had solar cells installed on the roof and the entire construction is DGNB Gold certified.

Henrik Svane, Head of Facility Management, DFDS

07Nordhavn

Reach out

Interested in hearing more about our work? Please get in touch!

Søren Mølbak

CEO & Partner

Architect MAA

sm@plh.dk

+45 2720 0591