History of Sing Sing
The story of the famous "prison" building at KHT
After a refurbishment accomplished by the architects Bjurström & Brodin, the institution of Industrial management and organisation moved in during the fall 2003 (Sing Sing was built in 1948. Architect: Nils Arhbom).
The technologist yard, or the Polhem yard as it was known from the start, was originally supposed to be a closed back room.
Once the construction of the building was launched, the ideal layout had already witnessed a change as modernism advocated rather open plane solutions with freely surrounding buildings.
The building was Nils Ahrbom´s first as a chief architect at KTH´s building committee. The two higher part of the building generate a counterpart to the industry ward at Valhallavägen.
The first and the second grade physics science students moved here, from their previous location on Drottninggatan.
Along the west side of the building there were great halls for drawing and to the east smaller rooms for writing.
As there is a difference between the heights of the small rooms and great halls, the floors are unsymmetrical and the joist is separated by an atrium in the middle of the building.
During reconstruction work the drawing halls has been decimized giving place to a modern office environment. The atrium is used for all kinds of events.
The students thought that the atrium with its single-sided corridors and grid rails reminded of a prison, hence the nickname Sing Sing.