 |
MAGYAR
POLSKI |
For redevelopers with good ideas, Berlin is still a gold mine. There are hardly as many objects in any other city, which need more than just a new coat of paint. However, allowing historical buildings to keep their charm while simultaneously giving them a new lease of life is not everyone’s thing. One person who is right at home in this milieu is the architect Stefan Klinkenberg.
He needs to be too: keywords like gutting and conversion, heat insulation, new building technology and modern fire protection sound like a lot of work in old ruins. This was precisely the condition of the former Königstadt brewery in the Prenzlau Berg district of the city. The brewery, founded in 1851 by master brewer Wagner on the former windmill hill, developed into one of the largest businesses in Berlin. This was also due to the huge cellar vaults in the heart of the hill where the master brewer was able to store his beer barrels before the invention of artificial cooling. In spite of this, 1921 marked the end to the jovial brewer life – but luckily not to the historical buildings. Different businesses used the premises for over 80 years, until the right solution was found in 2003. The 8,000 square-meter premises passed over to an association, which was founded by local tradesmen. The old Königsstadt could now be further developed – not by big investors, but within the association. Workshops were created on the ground floor, while small sectioned attic and office units were developed on both upper floors not forgetting the offices on the top floor.
“The association’s claim is achieving synergy effects between businesses”, says Stefan Klinkenberg. “For this reason, a connecting element was needed in the building. The lift also serves this purpose.”
He used a supporting structure between the concrete supports for the lift panelling made from galvanized TZ grill 30 x 3 mm with a mesh size of 40 x 40 mm. This was layered with galvanised expanded metal with a mesh size of 16 x 6.6 mm and a bridge width of 1 mm. The doors to the old spiral staircase were given a similar design. Expanded metal was used at the top in the Belvedere as well as outdoors for the waste shed panelling. The company responsible for this was Metallbau Schlämann from Berlin.
“Occasionally practical reasons dominate the selection of expanded metal”, says Stefan Klinkenberg. “In the lift, the openings were not to be bigger than 5 mm, so that nothing could be stuck through them. Then there is also the interesting visual play that the different fields of vision on expanded metal offer. If you look at it at right angles, it is almost transparent. From an angle, it is in contrast compact and dazzling in the light”.
The price advantage was also an argument. “Expanded metal is lowpriced and the surfaces can be easily replaced in the case of damage”, explains Stefan Klinkenberg. “In the old Königsstadt, we have thought of everything. Our catchword is not for nothing ‘continue building’. And this is very possible with a modern material like expanded metal.”
