The new five-storey office building in Bonn houses, among other things, the German Aerospace Center (DLR). The architects at Chapman Taylor combined a simple geometric shape with a complex, relief-like facade. With the new formparts.fab made of glassfibre reinforced concrete, the architects succeeded in setting the tone for the building cubature. This, together with the golden elements, created a distinctive contrast. Due to their low weight and large span widths, the sharp-edged formed parts are perfect for facades with challenging geometries. They are assembled from several parts, which lends even more design flexibility to the elements: they are up to seven metres long and come with a wide range of colours, surfaces, textures and combinations. Ultimately, it was the authentic material properties, the flexible design, the straightforward supporting structure and the resulting economic advantages that won over the architects. Photos: Ditz Fejer