Around 6 months before the handover, the façade is largely complete, the windows have been installed and the interior construction, roofing work and completion of the outdoor facilities are also in full swing. In the next few months, the roof construction as well as the planking will be installed in the new wooden attic, and the rondel in the inner courtyard will receive its floor-to-ceiling aluminium and glass façade so that it is illuminated by as much daylight as possible. The topping-out ceremony on 15 May 2024 marked the completion of the shell.
The combination of existing and new construction harbours surprises
In order to minimise the amount of space used outside and at the same time create short distances within the facility, the existing building was extended with a total of four extensions and one storey was added. What sounds simple at first glance proved to be a real challenge. Due to a lack of documentation, building material samples had to be taken from the existing KLB masonry in order to derive the requirements for the building physics and statics of the extensions. The new top floor was constructed in solid timber for weight and approval reasons. Below the strip foundations of the three extensions on the north side, foundation steps were arranged using lean concrete wedges in order to transfer the forces below the existing basement floor. The extension to the south-east was founded on micro bored piles by PORR special civil engineering in order to transfer the loads past the Winterhude transport pipeline running under the building. Project manager Markus Rasche is delighted with another successful project: ‘In addition to our experience and creativity, the intensive and collaborative coordination with our client's team was crucial to the success of the project.’
