Mikkelsen Arkitekter A/S

Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen

Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Sjavit Maestro

Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen 

Vilhelm Lauritzen Architects + Mikkelsen Architects + STED

ARCHITECTS
Mikkelsen Architects, STED, Vilhelm Lauritzen Architects

ARCHITECTS
Rikke Steinicke, Lotte Bigom-Eriksen

PROGRAM / USE / BUILDING FUNCTION
Diabetes Hospital

ARCHITECTURE
Vilhelm Lauritzen Architects, Mikkelsen Architects

LEAD LANDSCAPE AND URBAN PLANNING
Martin Hjerl

ENGINEER
COWI A/S

PARTNERS
Thomas West Jensen, Stig Mikkelsen, Daniel Illum-Davis

LANDSCAPE
STED

MANUFACTURERS
HS Hansen

PHOTOGRAPHS
Sjavit Maestro, Rasmus Hjortshøj

AREA
18200 m²

YEAR
2021

LOCATION
Herlev, Denmark

CATEGORY
Hospital

Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen (SDCC) is Northern Europe's largest hospital for the prevention and treatment of diabetes.

Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Sjavit Maestro
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Sjavit Maestro

It redefines the way we perceive sickness and health, as it draws on the science behind how architecture combined with nature can be used not only to treat but also to prevent and educate.

Designed in cooperation with users, the hospital incorporates warm materials, strategic flows, and daylight. It is organized around a large two-story garden with six smaller lush courtyards, with a public rooftop garden. The anodized aluminum façade frame has large glass sections that break the boundary between indoors and outdoors.

Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj

Studies show that traditional hospital settings can make healthy patients feel ill and weaken them physically and emotionally. Therefore, user involvement has been the common thread throughout the creation of SDCC with an emphasis on ensuring a pleasant experience in all stages of arrival, waiting, and consultation.

The design rethinks the function of common areas, converting waiting time to active time and supporting a natural flow of activities around the themes of diet, exercise, and new knowledge.

Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Sjavit Maestro
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj

The building and the garden landscapes at SDCC are closely interwoven in a biophilic design, creating a symbiosis between inside and out. Research shows that nature has positive effects on both mental and physical well-being.

Therefore, the omnipresence of nature is a key architectural grip at SDCC serving as an integrated part of the treatment and the promotion of a healthy lifestyle.

Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj

People who spend time in green spaces are more likely to report good health, thus SDCC is designed around nature with the landscape visible everywhere.

Warm wooden floors and ceilings serve as primary interior material as studies show that wooden interior reduces stress.

Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj

The green spaces represent a biodiversity hub with varied vegetation providing a calm and educational space.

The design of SDCC rests on the values of democracy as a place that embraces nature and the diversity and equality that life constitutes.

Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj

It is a hospital that, by virtue of its scale, materiality, and atmosphere at all levels, puts the human at the center. Upon arrival, a lush and undulating landscape greets visitors who enter through the main entrance.

Here concrete in-situ cast pavements nudge naturally towards the grand staircase that invites visitors to ascend to the public rooftop garden.

Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj

The garden is a biodiversity hub open for everyone to enjoy 24 hours, seven days a week.

SDCC is embedded into the geometrical context of the Herlev Hospital grounds of the capital region, providing an easily accessible point of arrival.

Visitors who arrive by car can use the SDCC building’s underground car park with 241 spaces or the spacious parking lot by the main entrance.

Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj


Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj


Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Sjavit Maestro
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Rasmus Hjortshøj
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
© Sjavit Maestro


Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
Plan - Ground floor 1.200
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
Plan - Ground floor 1.200
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
Plan - Ground floor 1.200
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
Plan - Ground floor 1.200
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
Plan - Ground floor 1.200
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
Plan - Ground floor 1.200
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
Plan - Site 1.1000
Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen
Plan - Ground floor 1.200

Mikkelsen Arkitekter A/S
T +45 7230 2050
Mikkelsen Arkitekter A/S
Vesterbrogade 95A, 1620 København, Denmark