New home for Council of Ministers

ASSA ABLOY in Belgium worked closely with architects and the European Council to solve a wide range of entrance challenges at the new Council of Ministers building in Brussels.

Improved security for EU expansion

With the European Union’s recent expansion, additional demands have been placed on buildings housing the different bodies of the Union. The Lex building in Brussels, Belgium, is a new construction which will house the enlarged Council of European Ministers, which is part of the legislative arm of the European Union.

The design for the new building was selected through an international competition and was created by Belgian architects, M. & J-M. Jaspers – J. Eyers & Partners. The design is based on two opposing shells with the offices running along the building’s windowed facades. The building’s total floor space is 85,000 square meters and includes more than 3000 doors.

Strict requirements

Since the project began in 1998, ASSA ABLOY in Belgium has worked closely with M. & J-M. Jaspers – J. Eyers & Partners and the European Council to find solutions for a wide range of doors and door functions at the new Lex Building. The main challenge was to develop a solution that would meet a combination of design, technical and social requirements as well as offering varying grades of security, safety and functionality.

In addition to these strict requirements the architect also required a high level of convenience. Combining these different requests into a working solution that satisfied several different partners was a challenging assignment.

History of trust

M. & J-M. Jaspers – J. Eyers & Partners translated strict demands, from functional integration in the site to facilities for pedestrians, into a well thought-out, transparent and solid design. ASSA ABLOY’s solution focused too on ensuring the integrity of the overall site as well as meeting strict demands on security and safety.

ASSA ABLOY in Belgium put a lot of effort into cooperating with the architects and the European Council to decide what kind of door solutions they wanted and needed. ASSA ABLOY has a good reputation in Belgium and was chosen based on its competence, service and high quality products.

Products

• DIN 18251 kl3 locks - IKON
• MP 75 cylinders: litto
• Panic devices - JPM
• Mechanical panic locks -  effeff / Abloy
• Tonicline stainless steel door handles, roses and escutcheons, hinges, doorstops – litto
• Door closers in stainless steel - Abloy
• Electric locks – effeff/ Abloy
• Magnets - effeff

Are you interested in ASSA ABLOY products and solutions?

Please visit the ASSA ABLOY product pages for information about our locks, access control, mobile keys with NFC, door automatics and more. You can also experience our lock and security solutions for any door opening in the ASSA ABLOY solution pages.