Lorenz Architekten

Description

The administration and production building was built in 1971 as the headquarters of the Spengler fashion brand. Following the liquidation and sale of the property, there were many changes of tenants, vacancies as well as a refurbishment backlog. In 2019 our architectural competition entry envisaged a transformation to give the building a «second life» and to provide a contemporary space for four colleges and vocational schools within the existing structure. The new classrooms, laboratories, administration offices, radiology and hospital wards as well as the functions of assembly hall, cafeteria, canteen, media library and sport facilities extend over eight floors. The «Campus Bildung Gesundheit» has thus developed into the largest location for healthcare training in Switzerland. Instead of demolition and new construction, the robust existing building was converted for its new use and brought up to modern energy standards. A CO₂ equivalent of around 60,000 tons of grey energy was saved, and the new façade and building services reduced the operational energy requirements by 70 per cent. Targeted architectural interventions were necessary to transform the former industrial building into a public school building: Two storeys were added, a representative stair hall was installed, and two atriums were built, bringing light and a more welcoming quality into the deep building. The greenery planted in these atriums provides shade and carries the beautiful park environment indoors to the upper floors.