Dow Chemical Company Brazilian Corporate Headquarters, São Paulo, Brazil by Athié | Wohnrath

One recent interior design project that highlights many of the benefits A|W has derived from using Building Information Modeling (BIM) is the Dow Chemical Company’s new Brazilian corporate headquarters—a 10-story, 12,000-square-meter building in São Paulo that will accommodate around 800 employees and include office space, an auditorium, and a restaurant, as well as laboratories and other technical facilities.

Dow Chemical Company’s new Brazilian corporate headquarters

Corporate Interior and Architectural Design Projects: Athié | Wohnrath (A|W)

Location: São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Project: Dow Chemical Company Brazilian Corporate Headquarters

Area: 10-story, 12,000 Square Meter Building

Software employed: Autodesk Revit Architecture, Autodesk 3ds Max Design, Autodesk Inventor

During the bid process, A|W used Revit Architecture and 3ds Max Design to help convert the original 2D building drawings into a vivid, information-rich 3D model and a series of high-fidelity presentations. After seeing these presentations, Dow Chemical engaged A|W to customize the building’s interior for greater sustainability and target LEED Gold™ Commercial Interiors certification.

Aerial view of building

The Solution

Once Dow Chemical awarded the project, A|W continued developing the BIM model it had begun in the pre-award phase, thereby helping to accelerate and simplify the design process.

Interior

The model also facilitated other aspects of the design process, which proceeded concurrently with construction of the building’s exterior. For example, at one point the client realized that the building needed to accommodate a greater number of employees than originally planned. The model also proved helpful in performing quantity takeoffs and conducting design review.

Athie Wohnrath design

The Result

The BIM process helped A|W to maintain accuracy and consistency while keeping pace with numerous design changes on the highly technical project and notably reducing design time.

Established in 1990 and employing more than 375 professionals in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Athié | Wohnrath (A|W) provides integrated services for all phases of corporate interior and architectural design projects, including retrofits. The firm’s clientele includes some of the world’s largest and most successful companies, such as Nike, Nextel, Microsoft, Intel, IBM, and Warner Bros.

Tags: Brazil, Sao Paulo

Categories: 3dS Max, Autodesk Inventor, Commercial Building, Revit

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