dauner rommel schalk architekten

Description

The Competence Centre in Süßen forms an urban bridgehead on the Fils River connecting the districts on either side. The volume of the new building varies between two and four storeys. The four-storey section on the street front relates to comparable structures along the adjacent streets, with at the rear a reduction in the overall dimensions ensures the building’s harmonious integration into its surroundings. The striking limestone façade underscores both the building’s prominent status and its structure: the arrangement of the cornices, pilasters and closed surfaces betrays the underlying structural framework as well as on the location of ancillary spaces such as stairwells. These are set behind perforated natural stone panels. In the stairway areas, these perforations pierce all the way through the stone, which leads to patterned light effects when the sun shines into the space. A heat exchanger supplied with water from the nearby Fils River is used both to heat and cool the building.