Western Switzerland<span style="color:#000000"> </span>

In 2004, under former CEO Peter Epting, Burckhardt expanded its presence beyond the borders of the German language region into French-speaking Switzerland by acquiring the tk3 AG and establishing offices in Geneva and Lausanne. With an annual revenue exceeding 40 million Swiss francs and a workforce of 230, Burckhardt+Partner emerged as the new Swiss market leader and became the country’s largest architecture firm back then. The cultural enrichment that followed was just as significant. The close collaboration between the German-speaking Swiss locations and those in the French-speaking West required ongoing translation, both linguistic and cultural, a process that became second nature at Burckhardt.

The tk3 AG had its roots in the architecture firm Suter + Suter, which had gone public in 1986, branching out into real estate and expanding geographically. However, unsuccessful ventures at home and abroad, compounded by a sluggish construction market and a weak capital base, forced Suter + Suter to file for a debt-restructuring moratorium in 1995 after banks slashed its credit lines. The real estate division was liquidated, and part of the core business was taken over by Thyssen Immobilien GmbH in a rescue entity named Suter + Suter Planer AG, which was rebranded as tk3 AG in 2000. Having already acquired Suter + Suter’s Bern office, Burckhardt completed the takeover of tk3 AG in 2004. 

All key personnel from tk3 AG, led by Philipp Brühlmeier, who had held a prominent role at Suter + Suter, remained at the Geneva and Lausanne offices. This integration anchored Burckhardt in Switzerland’s major economic hubs, allowing the firm to stay closely connected to the market despite its substantial size. The new offices in Western Switzerland also brought fresh innovation. The expertise of the former tk3 AG in driving digital transformation in the construction industry aligned seamlessly with Burckhardt’s own strategic goals, spurring an intensified push towards digitalization. After stepping back from operational duties in 2018, Philipp Brühlmeier handed over leadership of the Western Swiss offices to Oliver Henninger and transitioned to the role of chairman of the board, focusing on the firm’s strategic direction.