In its report the jury praises the transformation of the Ceres building. “diederendirrix architects have given the former boilerhouse a new life in a way that’s extremely intelligent, discreet en highly effective. The jury are very impressed, and regard the transformation from a boilerhouse into a pleasant, light area for people to work in as an absolute tour de force, with no out‑of‑place signs of all the work that has been done on the building.” Praise is also due to the client, TU/e’s Real Estate Management service, according to the jury report.

Both Paul Diederen and Bert Dirrix, the directors and founders of the architects firm, are TU/e alumni. Past projects they have handled include the design of Vertigo, the former home of the Chemical Engineering and Chemistry department, which was transformed into a striking and distinctive building for the Built Environment department.

Ceres (which stands for Central Energy and REgulator Station) was opened in October 2012. Until 2006 it provided TU/e with hot water and heating. The historical and industrial character of Ceres has remained largely intact, as has the 70 meter high brick chimney which stands next to the building. The Catalyst and MetaForum buildings at TU/e were also on the list of nominations; the latter received an honorable mention in the South Region.

You can find the full jury report here.