Blood center uses architecture to encourage blood donation [slideshow]

In Raciborz, Poland, a new center for the donation, storage, and study of blood and blood-related diseases has a unique take on what a healthcare facility should be.

Designed by FAAB Architektura, the project's aesthetic was guided by its function. The color scheme, facade panel glossiness, and the irregularly elevated leitmotif were intentionally designed to evoke the "richness" of blood, according to the architects. 

The physical geometry of the building also aims to illustrate a larger concept about the facility: the clash between biology and technology. Any rounded parts of the building are meant to represent biology, and the straight sections represent technology. 

"The intentional vivid color scheme of the elevation, making the building visually suprising to the public, calls attention to the idea of the blood donation," the architects said in a press release. "Application of the glazed panels is inspired by the local Silesian building tradition, which is present in the historical building facades with the glazed bricks."

Three different shades of red were used to create irregularity on the exterior of all four levels of the facility. Ceramic pipes at the top level prevent overheating in the conference room and disguise the technological systems located at the roof level. 

The Regional Blood Center, phase one of this project, contains storage rooms, a blood collecting unit, advanced medical laboratories, blood radiation laboratory, offices, and a conference center. The interior design goes hand-in-hand with the exterior design, using the same red-and-white color scheme. 

Most rooms are lit naturally by two belts of windows, with the lower belts lighting up laboratory worktops on the outer walls and the upper belt, located just below the filings, allows light to penetrate to the remotest part of the rooms.

The blood center project is divided into three parts: the main Regional Blood Center building, a mobile blood center located on a bus, and Poland's first center for blood cancer diagnostics. Currently, only the first phase is complete.

Photo credit: Bartlomiej Senkowski © FAAB Architektura