Located between the cathedral and the Romanesque Basilica of St. Gereon, the elegantly curved façade of the former Bauwens headquarters catches the eye. The classically proportioned office building on Gereonstraße was constructed between 2007 and 2009 as part of the development of the former Nordstern insurance company site into a mixed-use residential and office location with a total area of around 27,000 square meters. The Bauwens Group had its Cologne headquarters here until 2015.

With its striking double stepped design, deep reveals, and finely profiled window elements, the office building blends seamlessly into the historic cityscape. The design was the result of an international competition and was conceived by the Cologne-based firm Steves & Borsum Architekten in collaboration with Selldorf Architects from New York. The Bauwens architects were responsible for the implementation.

The flexibly divisible office building is designed as an open workshop and offers a wide range of opportunities for exchange and communication. Internal connections between the office floors and open communication zones play an important role in this. Even before construction began, the project, which was already 100 percent rented, was sold to a fund managed by AXA Real Estate Managers.