GLC Building ETH Zürich by Boltshauser Architekten

The GLC Building at ETH Zürich, designed by Boltshauser Architekten, is a landmark academic facility that merges health sciences, technology, and research. Completed in 2020, this 22600 m² university building embodies architectural innovation, sustainability, and historical integration within Zürich’s renowned university quarter.

Urban Context and Design Integration

Located in the dense university district, the GLC Building sits alongside ETH’s historic Semper Polytechnic and 19th-century educational structures. As part of ETH Zürich’s 2012–2020 Real Property Strategy, the project consolidated the departments of health sciences, technology, information technology, and electrical engineering.

The building’s design responds to its hillside site, balancing urban visibility, lake views, and structural demands. On the street-facing side, only five levels are visible, while the slope-facing side reveals just two, despite the complex being seven stories tall.

Architectural Features and Entrance Design

A defining feature is the curved external staircase along Gloriastrasse. Developed with artist Urs Beat Roth, it forms part of an Art and Architecture collaboration, integrating an existing concrete sculpture by Fredi Thalmann. This creates a striking identity for the complex and establishes a welcoming public entry point.

Inside, the atrium with zenithal lighting forms a luminous heart, while a double main staircase connects the entrance to the upper levels. Lounge niches and circulation zones foster both community interaction and functional rhythm.

Program and Spatial Organization

The GLC Building is designed for flexibility and collaboration:

• Ground Floor: public foyer, restaurant, seminar rooms, and student workplaces.
• Upper Floors: laboratories, offices, and research spaces.
• Basement Levels: specialized laboratories, technical equipment, and service infrastructure.

The Paul Scherrer lecture hall, preserved as a historic centerpiece, connects the new complex with ETH’s academic heritage.

Façade Innovation and Materiality

The façade reinterprets modernist glass block traditions, referencing ETH’s Otto Rudolf Salvisberg buildings from the 1930s. Designed as a double-skin system, the façade integrates glass block coffers, strip windows, and steel frames, achieving:

• Daylight optimization
• Brise-soleil shading effects
• Energy efficiency through climate-responsive design

On the slope side, a retaining wall structure anchors the building into the terrain. This massive arc-shaped wall, nearly 18 meters high, also doubles as a passive cooling system, channeling fresh air and utilizing soil mass for energy savings.

Technical Systems and Sustainability

The GLC Building highlights technical transparency through the visible organization of conduits and systems, progressing from concealed public zones to exposed laboratory areas. This architectural hierarchy reflects the building’s functional narrative.

Other sustainable features include:

• District heating and cooling connection
• In-wall cooling via retaining wall cavities
• Daylight-responsive double-skin façade
• Efficient LED lighting integrated with cooling panels

The GLC Building ETH Zürich exemplifies how contemporary academic architecture can merge research functionality, sustainability, and historical continuity. Boltshauser Architekten’s design not only enhances ETH’s urban campus identity but also sets a precedent for energy-efficient educational infrastructure.

All Photographs are works of Kuster Frey