DTU Building 116

DTU Building 116

B116 Corridor 02 Adam Mork Education
  • Experience
  • Story

Revitalising an Icon for the Future of Learning

Originally designed in the 1960s by acclaimed architects Eva and Nils Koppel, Building 116 at the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) has been reimagined for a new generation of students. As DTU’s largest auditorium building, the renovation honours the original modernist architecture while elevating it to meet today’s educational, environmental, and social standards.

Once characterised by low ceilings, dim lighting, and a heavy indoor climate, the building now offers bright, welcoming spaces that support active learning, collaboration, and community. The transformation includes three revitalised auditoriums, new flexible teaching environments, and communal areas redesigned as dynamic study zones. With improved acoustics, natural ventilation, and upgraded lighting—enhanced by artist Malene Bach’s expanded colour palette—the building now fosters a warm and poetic atmosphere.

Sustainability has been a guiding principle throughout, with the project achieving DGNB Silver certification—the first of its kind for a renovated building on DTU’s campus. The original façade has been energy-optimised, and new glass openings create stronger connections between inside and out. Inside, heritage materials such as slate, oak, and yellow brickwork have been carefully preserved, reinforcing the building’s architectural integrity.

Technology and tradition meet in the main auditorium, where reupholstered seating, oak wall cladding, and a vast LED screen are accompanied by a custom-designed curtain showing art films inspired by DTU’s research.

Building 116 exemplifies how 1960s and 70s architecture can be thoughtfully adapted for contemporary use—uniting sustainability, cultural heritage, and human-centred design in a cohesive, future-ready whole.

Location:
Lyngby, Denmark
Programme:
Educational Facilities
Size:
3.450 m2
Client:
Technical University of Denmark (DTU)
Engineer:
EKJ Engineers
Other Consultants:
Lightscapes (light), Malene Bach (art)
Phots:
Adam Mørk, Laura Stamer
A New Chapter for Koppel’s Iconic DTU Building 116

Building 116 at the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) is a striking lecture hall originally designed in the 1960s by renowned Danish architects Eva and Nils Koppel. With deep respect for the building’s original architectural qualities, the building has undergone a thorough renovation to optimise student well-being and energy performance. Building 116 now offers modern study facilities that enhance and reinforce DTU’s position as one of the world’s leading technical universities.

As one of the first newly renovated institutional buildings in Denmark, Building 116 has been awarded the DGNB Silver certification. It is also the first renovated building at DTU to receive a sustainability certification.

Situated just north of Copenhagen in a naturally scenic setting, the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) cultivates some of the brightest scientific and engineering minds of tomorrow. With a strong international outlook, DTU attracts students and researchers from across the globe.

The campus, designed more than fifty years ago, reflects the functionalist and modernist ideals of its time. Comprised by more than 100 low-rise buildings arranged across four quadrants, the architecture is integrated into a green park landscape with ample space for parking. To ensure state-of-the-art facilities for research and education in the years ahead, DTU is now investing more than DKK 4 billion in the comprehensive renovation and transformation of its iconic campus buildings and infrastructure — including the refurbishment of Building 116.

B116 Common Area 01 Laura Stamer Education
B116 Corridor 01 Laura Stamer Education

Building 116 is DTU’s largest auditorium building. Before the renovation, Building 116 was characterised by heavy air, low ceilings, and dim lighting. Now the once enclosed, dark interior has been transformed into light and airy spaces for connectivity, group work and social activities to foster an active student environment and provide optimal conditions for learning. This has been achieved by renovating and revitalising the building's three large auditoriums, creating new, flexible learning spaces with greater visual connection between classrooms, and transforming the communal areas into dynamic and inspiring study environments.

Throughout the renovation process the environmental, social, and economic sustainability has been a central focus both in the design and execution phases. The building has undergone environmental remediation and improvements to the indoor climate with new and enhanced ventilation, improved natural and artificial lighting, and upgraded acoustics now provide optimal conditions for a wide range of teaching formats.

B116 Common Area 03 Laura Stamer Education

Natural and artificial lighting play a key role in the transformation of Auditorium Building 116. The new lighting design makes even the greyest February day feel warm and inviting. Visual artist Malene Bach has expanded on Koppel’s primary colour palette with welcoming tones that give the building a distinctive poetic sensibility. The architecture has gained additional layers, including translucent ceiling textiles that gently diffuse sunlight, creating a soft and comfortable atmosphere.

The result is a sensory experience on a more human scale, where the spaces’ once-monumental character has been softened, and the architecture made more inviting and approachable.

B116 Windows and Art Laura Stamer Education
B116 Window from below 01 Adam Mork Education

The original building envelope has been energy-optimised, and to contribute to a more vibrant campus atmosphere, the façades have been opened with large glass sections that create stronger visual connections between the building and the surrounding campus.

B116 Common Area 02 Laura Stamer Education
B116 Auditorium 01 Laura Stamer Education

Inside the large auditorium, all the seats have been reupholstered in dark Bordeaux fabric with a red frame. The walls are clad with warm oak timber slats, while the lecturers have been provided with a new chalkboard and a 2.6 x 15-metre LED screen to unfold their presentations on. In front of the screen and chalkboard hangs a 15-metre-long custom-designed stage curtain, onto which short art films are shown before and after lectures. These films are inspired by DTU’s research fields and help to strengthen the academic identity of the building.

Today, the lecture hall building is ready to serve DTU for many years to come. Its original qualities, such as robust materials like the straw-yellow brickwork and fine slate flooring, have been preserved. The auditoriums have been adapted to support new teaching methods, while corridors and cloakrooms have been transformed into student spaces. In this way, Building 116 demonstrates the great potential for reusing architecture from the 1960s and 70s to meet today’s needs.

B116 Auditorium 03 Adam Mork Education

At the neighbourhood level, the university’s campus plan advances towards absolute sustainability by transforming a 1960s campus into a modern university through urban densification. The campus has been DGNB pre-certified as a sustainable district.

Building 116 is progressing towards absolute sustainability through the revitalisation of a 1970s university building. The five-metre-wide corridors and dim cloakrooms have been reimagined as active study areas and bright, open spaces that functionally unify the building. The structure’s original quality materials – including brick, concrete, and slate – have been preserved, along with the original auditorium furnishings. In this way, cultural heritage and sustainability are brought together into a cohesive architectural whole.