Modern architecture meets engineering of the future

21/09/2009

  

New Cologne, Germany landmark

In 2009, three office buildings will be completed in Cologne, Germany, boasting impressive architecture inspired by quay cranes of the past. The 15-story buildings are considered to be somewhat of a new landmark for the modern, future-oriented Cologne. The buildings are designed by the Hamburg architecture office Bothe Richter Teherani. The southernmost of these buildings, Kranhaus Plus, houses a comprehensive solution in which well water is utilised for both heating and cooling purposes. The geographical and geothermal characteristics of the site, located on the bank of the Rhine, have been exploited in the design of the building.
The building is equipped with a system based on the thermal activation of its concrete structures. This prevents unpleasant fluctuations in temperature in these light, glass-walled offices, also during long periods of hot weather. The silent cooling system developed by Uponor stores room heat and operates invisibly, without generating any feeling of draught.
The Kranhaus 1 building took first prize in the business centre category at the MIPIM international real estate trade show in Cannes last March being the "office building of the year 2009".