Berger Logistik, Wörgl, Austria

The lack of development potential at the existing site for the construction of a new, bigger headquarters for the rapidly expanding company led to the construction of a prestigious office building next to the town's train station in 2015.

The client and architect have created a working environment at the new site that is very much in tune with the needs of employees, providing noise protection, good lighting and climate control. The Contec ON near-surface concrete core activation and the VARICOOL Uni ceiling cooling and heating system from Uponor were installed because they meet these requirements. 

The thermal use of components with Contec ON near-surface concrete core activation is a key element of the energy concept. Basic heating and cooling loads are thus covered. To deliver the required fast reaction to load fluctuations as well as the wider performance range for heating and cooling compared with conventional concrete core activation, the tube registers of Contec ON are embedded just 19 mm below the concrete surface. The airtight and high-pressure cross-linked plastic pipe used has a nominal width of 14 mm x 2.0 mm. 

The prefabricated Contec ON support modules were installed on the formwork for the ceiling. The installers appreciated the automatic spacing of the Contec ON modules. Thanks to this function, the reinforcement can be installed directly on the modules. The proven pressing technology from Uponor ensured that the modules were connected to the distribution lines and manifolds reliably, safely and without special tools. 

In addition to concrete core activation, building systems engineers Stiefmüller Hohenauer & Partner GmbH included the VARICOOL Uni ceiling heating and cooling system in their plan. This uses the thermal radiance principle to radiate cold and heat, thus providing pleasant room temperature control free of draughts and noise. 

Along with comfort, design freedom and functionality, the VARICOOL Uni ceiling heating and cooling system offers high sound absorption. It can also be adapted to challenging room layouts without functional limitations. Fire alarms, lights or supply or exhaust air openings can easily be installed in the ceilings without additional elements.  The copper pipes conducting the water are installed completely invisibly behind the acoustic thermoboard (hole pattern 8/18Q). This design can also be used to create jointless ceiling surfaces for specific architectural requirements.

Square around a landscaped courtyard
The office building, which lies on the southwestern side of the station square in Wörgl, is designed as a square around a landscaped atrium. Most of the light and air in the offices thus comes from the courtyard. These workplaces offer noise protection and a strong focus on the best possible solutions in terms of indoor climate, lighting technology and acoustics. 

Architects Katzberger ZT GmbH worked with the client to find a suitable construction solution for the site, which has a lot of rail and road traffic noise. In addition, the company used the excellent transport links already in place at the site, which is served by a number of regional rail and bus lines, to develop an integrated mobility concept that supports the switch to public and low-emission modes of transport through financial incentives, adapting working hours to timetables, electric cars and e-bikes.