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Erich Gutenberg's business college
Project status: Completed 2014
Client: City of Cologne
Team: smo architektur
Location: Cologne, Germany
Façade area: 3234 m2
Cost: 3200000.00 €
Photograph: Rainer Mader
Project status: Completed 2014
Client: City of Cologne
Team: smo architektur
Location: Cologne, Germany
Façade area: 3234 m2
Cost: 3200000.00 €
Photograph: Rainer Mader
The object is the main school building of the common ensemble of Erich Gutenberg's business college in Cologne-Buchheim.
The school complex was erected in 1996, planned in the mania of functionalism, exemplary for its time, constructed as a reinforced concrete skeleton with precast wash concrete facade details.
Our task was to complete an energy efficient facade redevelopment. The technical and structural principles of the first construction section should also be appliable for the auditorium, the administration, the canteen as well as the sportshall to later create a homogeneous image. Of course, the economic aspect had to be considered as well, which afterwards influenced the choice of material. Correspondingly, ETICS and clinker quarter bricks were chosen for the wall cladding.
Our intention was to find an appropriate countenance for a great facility such as a school building and in the sense of Alvar Aalto demonstrate the superiority of public buildings over commercial structures.
Thematically we chose the principle of Layers for the facade system to transpose the process of studying to the building. The principle of layers is a natural process, which is known to people from all cultures, as we can meet it everywhere. We know, how the soil or a tree trunk are composed of layers. The process of studying is organized in layers as well.
The interaction between inside and outside is valid as the central category of architecture, so in this case it was also important for us to create a special relation between content and external effect and to lend the building an associated identity with recognition value, which corresponds to the particular performance of the school.
The school complex was erected in 1996, planned in the mania of functionalism, exemplary for its time, constructed as a reinforced concrete skeleton with precast wash concrete facade details.
Our task was to complete an energy efficient facade redevelopment. The technical and structural principles of the first construction section should also be appliable for the auditorium, the administration, the canteen as well as the sportshall to later create a homogeneous image. Of course, the economic aspect had to be considered as well, which afterwards influenced the choice of material. Correspondingly, ETICS and clinker quarter bricks were chosen for the wall cladding.
Our intention was to find an appropriate countenance for a great facility such as a school building and in the sense of Alvar Aalto demonstrate the superiority of public buildings over commercial structures.
Thematically we chose the principle of Layers for the facade system to transpose the process of studying to the building. The principle of layers is a natural process, which is known to people from all cultures, as we can meet it everywhere. We know, how the soil or a tree trunk are composed of layers. The process of studying is organized in layers as well.
The interaction between inside and outside is valid as the central category of architecture, so in this case it was also important for us to create a special relation between content and external effect and to lend the building an associated identity with recognition value, which corresponds to the particular performance of the school.