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Natural History Museum of Denmark

Visitor flow advice for the Natural History Museum of Denmark

Background

The new Natural Museum of Denmark, Statens Naturhistoriske Museum, will open its doors to the public in 2025. Forecasts predict an annual visitor footfall of approximately 450,000 people, which would make it one of the top two most visited museums in Denmark. The museum will house the collection from the Zoological Museum, and showcase three strands of the natural-historical heritage of Denmark under one roof, amounting to approximately 1.4 million collection pieces spread over four floors covering 8,000m2 of space. Movement Strategies was commissioned by Lundgaard & Tranberg Arkitekter, on behalf of the Museum. To undertake a visitor movement study to provide advice on visitor flow and quality of visitor experience in the new building, to ensure that future visitors have a memorable experience as they enter, exit, and move around the new facility.

Location 
Denmark

Client
Lundgaard & Tranberg Arkitekter 

Year
2016

WHAT WE DID

Our broad approach to this study has been through five distinct steps:

Step 1: We defined and agreed the design standards and targets related to people movement and comfort levels that the Museum aspire to have.

Step 2: We reviewed the forecast visitor demand and key operational parameters, defined by the museum.

Step 3: We undertook a qualitative and quantitative assessment of the proposed designs in light of the aspired visitor demand and also looked at easing movement across the museum.

Step 4: We reviewed the spatial layout of the building, specifically looking at the connectivity and visibility of spaces.

Step 5: We developed dynamic microsimulation models to assess the build-up of demand in different parts of the Museum during peak periods. We assessed how visitor flows, densities and experience vary across the circulation areas and throughout the periods of peak movement.

RESULTS

A key outcome of our advice was the enhancement of the circulation spaces connectivity and visibility of the entrances and associated facilities to and from the exhibition galleries, which will allow the intuitive navigation of visitors throughout the museum, with minimal need for wayfinding signage. The findings of these various strands of the detailed analysis informed design and operational refinements with the overall aim of offering a world-class visitor experience.

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