Central Garage Upper Austria : Architecture Information

Central Garage, Upper Austria / Ansfelden, Austria 2006 Caramel Architekten Project Description: The plan for the garage and office building for the state government of Upper Austria resulted from a limited open design competition in 2002 in which Caramel took first place. Although the organizer's brief called for a linear alignment of the functional units, Caramel arranged the main functional units in a U-configuration around a transparent covered interior yard. Situated in the west wing are the two-level office building as well as the employees' changing rooms and washrooms; directly adjacent to these are the special-service shops, e.g. the sandblasting and painting booths. Along the front of the complex is the two-level warehouse, which connects to the east garage, a 20-meter wide hall that can be driven into from both sides and allows daylight to enter through glass-reinforced plastic doors. The office wing lies at the far side of the garage hall area at the front of the works yard. The building as a whole unfolds outward along its length, emerging as a gentle slope from the terrain and rejoining it in its imaginary lengthwise projection, in the 72-meter-long shed roof. photo : hertha hurnaus Construction+Materials: With the exception of a number of warehouses and fire protection walls, the building was built using a three-row, very efficient steel-frame construction method. The construction deadline of roughly 18 months was met despite a harsh winter by using mass-produced, prefabricated steel beams and columns. A total of 367 tons of steel were used. The largest spans of 20 m were made possible by employing 1.60-meter-high plate girders. The materiality of the metal is emphasized by the application of micaceous iron oxide paint and contrasts sharply with the translucent glass-reinforced plastic door elements and glazed surfaces. The contrasts between the different materials in color as well as in haptic quality are a striking feature of the architecture; one notices them in many places inside and outside the building. The 24 glass-reinforced plastic doors are positioned between the fixed glazing and set in semicircular doorframes. Like the roof and the closed façade, the doorframes are composed of a black synthetic membrane (EVA). This gives the building its consistent homogeneous appearance; the rivets holding the façade in place reinforce the impression of glossy plasticity. The works yard also profits from the steel construction. The 6 x 20 m spaces are covered by two-layer pneumatic panels (arch rise: 1.25 m), which keep their form through an internal air pressure of 0.05 bars (the air pressure of tires is roughly 1.9 bars). The pneumatic panels, which are made of a 0.25 mm thick translucent ETFE membrane, support loads of 14 t, with a max. load capacity of 30 t. The matter-of-fact and industrial vernacular of the building's interior is intentional, making use of only a few materials, e.g. steel and glass. With the exception of the bright green washrooms, the color scheme tends to keep a low profile, sticking mainly to white and anthracite. The new central garage gives form to its structure-less surroundings and creates an identity and modernity that extends well past the walls of the building itself. Central Garage Upper Austria images / information from Caramel Architekten Central Garage Upper Austria - Building Information Architects: Caramel Architekten ZT - Gmbh Günter Katherl, Martin Haller, Ulrich Aspetsberger Assistant: Alexa Zahn Client: Land OÖ Contact Person: Bernhard Haider Structural Engineering: h+w statik Mr. Luger Building Services Design: Allprojekt Ms. Tobrmann Contractors: Fa Traussner (builder) Fa Haslinger (steel construction) Fa Aquarex (membrane façades and roofs, pneumatic panels) Fa Payreder (blacksmith) Fa Peiniger (flooring) Fa Supanz (technical equipment for automotive garages) Competition: 2002 - 1st prize Start of Construction : 05/2005 Completion: 10/2006 Photos & Credits: Hertha Hurnaus hehu@hurnaus.com Köstlergasse 3/9 A-1060 Vienna tel./fax: +43/1/5235064 mobile: +43/699/10441733 Key Data Building Volume: approx. 25,800 m³ Developed Area: approx. 4,400 m² (of that area 3,350 m² building + 1,050 m² yard) Usable Area: approx. 4,050 m² Number of Levels: garage: one level office: two levels Room Height: garage: 6.00 - 8.90 m, office + break areas: 2.50 - 4.10 m Main Uses: " Two-level office building with break areas and restrooms for 65 employees " Automotive garage consisting of nine areas with three large mechanics' pits, vehicle hoists, and a brake inspection stand, usable area: 1,335 m², room height: 7.20 - 8.90 m " Supplementary shop bays (blacksmith and tinsmith, mechanic's shop, apprentice's shop, electrician's shop, parts shop) " Special service shops: sandblasting booth and paint booth, usable area: 200 m² " Warehouse areas, usable area: 1,053 m² " Canopied open space as shop area, usable area: 1,162 m² " Canopied open space for auctions, usable area: 282 m² " Canopied works yard Construction: Garage hall construction using prefabricated, mass-produced steel beams on steel columns. Office wing construction as an independent two-level structure. Open spaces are canopied using a light steel or pneumatic construction method. Materials: Roofing/closed façades: insulated panels EVA synthetic membrane Translucent exterior walls/doors: GRP (glass-reinforced plastic), insulated glazing Works yard canopy: two-layered, ETFE-membrane air panels, approx. 6 m x 20 m