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Operations Building IBB Group
Gaswerkstrasse 5, Brugg-Windisch
2008
At
the time of the architectural competition in 2004 the planned building
for the Industriellen Betriebe Brugg (IBB) should define the eastern
border
of the settlement.
Since the realization of the sports training center Mülimatt, this position between the railway lines and the embankement of the River Aare is occupied this building.
Before the construction of the sports hall, the striking silhouette of the IBB Operations Building was completely visible from the train driving betwenn Baden and Brugg,
today it is partially hidden behind the sparts hall. The Operations Building of the IBB by Liechti Graf Zumsteg blends in perfectly in a heterogeneous environment, marked by greenhouses and
vast supporting walls. Volumetric multiply stepped, the Operations Building appears as a three-storey volume at the Friedhofstrasse while it features five stories otherwise.
The volumetrics of the building responds to the scale of the opposite house and gradually flattens against the riverbank. The long building volume divides the land
in two square-like outdoor spaces. Conditioned by the topography they give access to different floors and functional areas. From the higher level one gets to the offices
with customer traffic, while from the bottom is accessed the low-public maintenance depot.
The IBB provides Brugg and the neighboring communities with water, gas, electricity and cable TV. The entire group is united in one location so that the company building
is not only maintenance depot, but also an office complex. The building wears a dress made pre-patinated copper an all sides. The appearance of the material oscillates,
depending on the weather conditions, between delicate light green and vigorous turquoise. The boundary between the roof and facade is blurred by the shape and
the use of the same material. The silhouette of the building is emphasized by bordering panel sheets which trace the figure of the roofs. On the longitudinal
façades the windows with deep soffits are arranged in a rigid sequence and are fitted in the measurements of the folded roof. On the north side,
the windows are hightened by 20 cm on each floor. The front façades however, have larger surfaces freely arranged with punched holes to expose the deep floorplans
sufficiently to daylight. From the outside the punches hardly occur, because the architects could not imagine to perforate the façade, which was once imagined in exposed concrete.
On the Inside the perforated plates in front of the openings are barely perceptible. In addition to the green copper there is used brown painted sheet metal. This is used in
the two volume incisions, where windows, doors, folding doors and soffits are covered with it.
Behind the assembly hall, arranged on two levels, are located various storages, archives, technical rooms, dressing rooms and rooms for the fitters.
On the upper level are located the rooms for the fitters, each having a window which creates an operationally desirable view to the hall. Such a window
would have been nice in the stairwell, where the representative single-flight staircase lacks the spatial and architectural representation. Only from the sectional drawings
is perceptible how closely was the scope for the placement of the four vertical circulations. In the second staircase the elevator is in contact with the shed window,
so the viewable roof area remains free of penetrations. The staircase in the building is of an exceptional the spatial experience: At the foot of the stairs to level 4, the roofs
of two storeys move to the fore at the same time, and the mighty concrete parapets transform into a powerful sculpture. For the offices the special roof shape is favorable,
primarily on the top floor. More inclined and longer than the shed roofs of levels 3 and 4, the whole floor has a significantly greater ceiling heigt and gets much mor daylight.
Since the realization of the sports training center Mülimatt, this position between the railway lines and the embankement of the River Aare is occupied this building.
Before the construction of the sports hall, the striking silhouette of the IBB Operations Building was completely visible from the train driving betwenn Baden and Brugg,
today it is partially hidden behind the sparts hall. The Operations Building of the IBB by Liechti Graf Zumsteg blends in perfectly in a heterogeneous environment, marked by greenhouses and
vast supporting walls. Volumetric multiply stepped, the Operations Building appears as a three-storey volume at the Friedhofstrasse while it features five stories otherwise.
The volumetrics of the building responds to the scale of the opposite house and gradually flattens against the riverbank. The long building volume divides the land
in two square-like outdoor spaces. Conditioned by the topography they give access to different floors and functional areas. From the higher level one gets to the offices
with customer traffic, while from the bottom is accessed the low-public maintenance depot.
The IBB provides Brugg and the neighboring communities with water, gas, electricity and cable TV. The entire group is united in one location so that the company building
is not only maintenance depot, but also an office complex. The building wears a dress made pre-patinated copper an all sides. The appearance of the material oscillates,
depending on the weather conditions, between delicate light green and vigorous turquoise. The boundary between the roof and facade is blurred by the shape and
the use of the same material. The silhouette of the building is emphasized by bordering panel sheets which trace the figure of the roofs. On the longitudinal
façades the windows with deep soffits are arranged in a rigid sequence and are fitted in the measurements of the folded roof. On the north side,
the windows are hightened by 20 cm on each floor. The front façades however, have larger surfaces freely arranged with punched holes to expose the deep floorplans
sufficiently to daylight. From the outside the punches hardly occur, because the architects could not imagine to perforate the façade, which was once imagined in exposed concrete.
On the Inside the perforated plates in front of the openings are barely perceptible. In addition to the green copper there is used brown painted sheet metal. This is used in
the two volume incisions, where windows, doors, folding doors and soffits are covered with it.
Behind the assembly hall, arranged on two levels, are located various storages, archives, technical rooms, dressing rooms and rooms for the fitters.
On the upper level are located the rooms for the fitters, each having a window which creates an operationally desirable view to the hall. Such a window
would have been nice in the stairwell, where the representative single-flight staircase lacks the spatial and architectural representation. Only from the sectional drawings
is perceptible how closely was the scope for the placement of the four vertical circulations. In the second staircase the elevator is in contact with the shed window,
so the viewable roof area remains free of penetrations. The staircase in the building is of an exceptional the spatial experience: At the foot of the stairs to level 4, the roofs
of two storeys move to the fore at the same time, and the mighty concrete parapets transform into a powerful sculpture. For the offices the special roof shape is favorable,
primarily on the top floor. More inclined and longer than the shed roofs of levels 3 and 4, the whole floor has a significantly greater ceiling heigt and gets much mor daylight.