Lightweight Roof Material Texlon® ETFE
Lightweight foil cushions made of Texlon® ETFE span the courtyard of the Center for Free-Electron Laser Science (CFEL) in Hamburg. The CFEL is a joint initiative of DESY, the Max Planck Society and the University of Hamburg. The building has 24 laser measuring rooms and as such the design needed to take on the special demands of the structural dynamics associated with the use of advanced lasers. The layouts of the offices and laboratories were carefully considered to encourage an atmosphere of communication and collaboration. The innovative and lightweight roof material Texlon® ETFE perfectly combines exposure, heat protection and durability.
Interdisciplinary Work Processes
The architecture is intended to support the interdisciplinary work processes in the building. For example, a high proportion of communal areas characterizes the non-territorial spatial concept. In addition, all work areas are spatially connected to one another. The functional structure of the CFEL stands for maximum flexibility, networking and cooperation. The transparent roofing of the 610 square meter inner courtyard supports the communicative concept of the CFEL. The generous incidence of daylight creates a pleasant atmosphere in the interior that invites you to exchange and linger. Large Texlon® ETFE foil cushions span the inner courtyard with an impression of lightness and reveal a view of the sky. A dot matrix printed on the underside of the upper ETFE film layer shields excessive solar radiation. This means that the extremely light roof has a very low g-value.
Low Weight and Transparent
Due to the low weight of the transparent cushions, the architects were able to choose filigree and extremely lightweight beams made of steel as the substructure. This roof structure has a significantly lower static load on the building structure than a comparably large glass roof with the same exposure intensity.
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Our specially trained designers focus on creating efficient and lightweight structures with a maximum free span – often without disturbing columns. Contact us.
Information
| Date | 2011 |
|---|---|
| Location | Hamburg, Germany |
| Sector | Offices |
| Size | 610 m² |
| Structure | Steel |
| Type | Roof |
| Architects | Hammeskrause Architekten |
Images Copyright: Werner Huthmacher