The headquarters of the cement manufacturer, CBR, was built in Brussels in 1967-1970 by Constantin Brodzki. Born in 1924 in Rome, the son of a Polish diplomat and a Belgian woman, in his youth, worked in the project team of the New York headquarters of the UN: according to him, it was in the United States that he learned how to achieve construction efficiency, not resorting to ready-made solutions, but finding new ones. Therefore, this building - which he himself considers not in need of renovation - impressed the new owners, Fosbury & Sons, with the thoughtfulness and clarity of its layout. Therefore, it was decided that Going East would rebuild the structure as little as possible, but where this is inevitable, they would preserve the palette of materials chosen by Brodsky.
When viewed from the outside, the building immediately attracts attention: the facades are made up of 756 precast concrete panels, where almost oval windows are placed in a niche of the same silhouette. The regular pattern of the walls looks very impressive, and the author, so as not to violate it, did not even emphasize the entrance. The construction influenced contemporaries: a whole generation of buildings in the same "plastic" spirit appeared in Brussels.
The client of the modernization, Fosbury & Sons, offers a new type of office, with a comfortable, flexible and interesting environment. She already has a number of buildings in Antwerp, and the Brodsky building, now called Boitsfort, became their first Brussels site (two more are planned). The space on seven of the nine floors of the building - 7000 m2 - is intended for 600 employees from 250 companies. The garage occupies three underground levels. There are “private” and “semi-private” rental options, the lobby with a bar on the ground floor and other similar areas are also suitable for work. The building has 15 meeting rooms with all the necessary technological equipment, an auditorium for 75 people with a large screen, a restaurant. The Giorgio Bar on the top floor, overlooking the Xuan Forest, and the lobby are also suitable for social events. According to the scheme tested in Antwerp, the interiors are complemented by works of art, which were provided by various galleries and foundations, as well as their authors, to Fosbury & Sons.
