cavegn architektur
Gemeindewerkhof Balzers, Liechtenstein
best architects 12
commercial/industrial buildings
Place
Schaan | Liechtenstein
Studio
Photos
Barbara Bühler
Description
The community maintenance area houses the fire department, the Samaritans, municipal facilities and recycling station. Together with the substation of Liechtensteinischen Kraftwerke it forms a clear border to the adjacent green area with pine forest. The compact and dynamic building complex is completely different in character to the original industrial building and thus embodies its public use. The layout of the building aims to disentangle the various functional units in order to exclude the possibility of mutual interference from the outset. The black spruce wood façade consisting of vertical slats gives the building its architectural expression and refers to the nearby pine forest. The cladding system made of local spruce wood, which is extremely economical to produce and maintain, is geared towards the function of the interiors and fulfils additional criteria, such as illumination, thermal insulation in the summer, wind protection and more. In the workshops, concrete is the most dominant material, giving the complex a sculptural character.