Copenhagen, Denmark

2022 - 2026

Ripple Residence

Setting a new precedent for low-carbon construction standards, Ripple Residence is a six-story residential development located in Copenhagen’s Nordhavn district. Driven by material reuse and designed for disassembly, the mass-timber building is expected to achieve a lifetime carbon footprint of 5 kg CO₂e per m² per year – well below the new Danish carbon regulations.

Project details

Client

 Nrep

Typology

Residential

Constructed primarily of timber, the 13,000 m² building will include 115 residential apartments and two commercial spaces on the ground floor. Ripple Residence reimagines how we can maximize livability and appeal, while minimizing environmental impact. The project is a scalable prototype that reduces carbon footprint at every stage of the design process. 

Denmark is the first country to implement embodied carbon limits in building regulations. Starting 1 July 2025, multi-story apartment buildings must adhere to a maximum of 7.5 kg of CO₂ per m² per year over a 50-year period, with construction-phase emissions capped at 1.5 kg per m². 

In tackling carbon emissions, our design process rigorously questioned: how low can we go without compromising aesthetics or comfort? The results at Ripple Residence answer this question, with a projected emission of 5 kg per m² per year – well below the upcoming regulatory thresholds.

“To minimize the CO₂ footprint, we must think beyond the finished building and challenge every stage of its life cycle – from initial design to eventual disassembly – pushing past best practices for low-carbon construction,” says Troels Dam Madsen, Associate Design Director, Digital Practice.

Wood is the main material in Ripple Residence due to its significant potential to store CO2. Rune Bundgaard, 2025

“Reducing 61,000 tons of CO₂ is no small feat – it’s equivalent to removing one-third of Copenhagen’s passenger cars from the road for a year, matching the annual emissions of every resident in Nordhavn, or the impact of building a quarter of the city's future M5 metro line.”

Troels Dam Madsen

Associate Design Director – Digital Practice

A conservatory in the courtyard will be built from reused materials from the now-demolished Bruun Rasmussen auction house in Nordhavn — including large windows, reclaimed timber, and recycled tile flooring — preserving the building’s history within a new, community-oriented common space. Dimension Design, 2025

All phases of the building lifecycle

The environmental cost of construction is a challenge, due to carbon emissions from raw material extraction, transportation, manufacturing, installation, and disposal. 

Guided by programming real-time carbon calculations, our efforts focused on reducing operational carbon emissions per occupant by optimizing energy and resource usage. For up-front carbon, we prioritized low-carbon methods during construction, emphasizing waste reduction and the use of electric vehicles to cut emissions. The building is also designed to balance energy demand and capacity, with the residential area approaching self-sufficiency using ground spikes, heat pumps, and solar cells.

Elements traditionally constructed from concrete are being replaced with timber, including load-bearing structures, walls, and facades. Scaling down, wood is also incorporated into design details, such as shower stalls, elevator shafts, and stair cores. Rune Bundgaard, 2025

Repurposing materials

Material recycling is central to the design process, which began with an existing resource: a material bank provided by the now-demolished Bruun Rasmussen auction house in Nordhavn.

Key elements from this historic building are being thoughtfully reintegrated into the design, including red façade tiles repurposed for the entryway, mahogany stairs, and a garbage room and grocery cooling room, both clad in reused steel sheets. Upcycled concrete façade elements will be incorporated into the stairwell entrance, while old windows will be reused to bring natural light and warmth into the residences.

Designed for disassembly, the wooden structure will enable flexible usage and a prolonged life cycle, even at the end of its use. Rune Bundgaard, 2025
Wood is lighter than concrete, but its lower density makes it more challenging to control sound transmission, leading to acoustics and sound isolation issues. To address this, we've tested a new low-carbon solution using silicon powder which effectively dampens sound. Rune Bundgaard, 2025

Landscape architecture

A community-oriented courtyard

Two interior courtyards have been designed to maximize lush, green spaces for residents, despite the limited size. With these central common areas, the landscape offers spaces for relaxation and play amidst meadow grasses, cherry trees, and blooming perennials.

Material recycling goes beyond the building itself, seamlessly integrated into the surrounding landscape design. This includes the reuse of façade elements placed at the courtyard entrances, granite slabs incorporated into the hardscaping, and bicycle parking made from reclaimed metal.

“Shared amenities, like a greenhouse, cultivate a healthy, collaborative community, while green hedges and a recycled wood terrace offer opportunities for retreat, says Caroline Németh, Landscape Architect, Team Lead. 

The landscape design, extending across two interior courtyard spaces, thoughtfully balances public and private moments, creating gathering spaces for community interaction and pockets for personal retreat. Henning Larsen, 2023
Dimension Design, 2025
Dimension Design, 2025
Dimension Design, 2025

All contacts
Portrait of Troels Dam Madsen

Associate Design Director – Digital Practice

tdm@henninglarsen.com
Portraif of Caroline Grenaa Németh

Head of Department, Landscape

cne@henninglarsen.com
Portrait of Eva Ravnborg

Director, Denmark

era@henninglarsen.com

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