Shaped by Science
University of Innsbruck, general refurbishment of the technical faculties
The refurbishment of the University of Innsbruck’s architecture and engineering campus has become a flagship project of Austria’s Bundesimmobilien Gesellschaft (BIG). The buildings from 1969 were given a new identity focused on energy efficiency. The reduction of up to 85 % in the energy needs of the central tower led to its classification as Austria’s second-best office building refurbishment.
Following our success in an EU-wide competition, we were commissioned to remodel and generally refurbish the rundown buildings of the Faculties of Architecture and Engineering Sciences, which were originally built in 1969. The project combined an architectural challenge with the updating of the building services infrastructure (thermal, electrical, fire protection, and escape routes) of the main and ancillary buildings of both faculties.
New identities for two dissimilar siblings
Our integrated concept enabled us to give the two buildings, which were originally very similar, unique identities that reflected their different users and, hence, realized the essential sustainability measures in different ways. For example, the clear, smooth, and self-contained silhouette of the striking “tower” of the construction engineers communicates “precision” and “innovation.” In contrast, the “playfully-open” glass facade of the architecture building addresses creative discourse and permits passersby to see deep into the interior. Despite these aesthetic opposites, the duo forms a harmonious ensemble while each, in its own way, tests the technical potential of energy-efficient building design.
Sunglasses for the “architecture workshops”
These different design approaches can already be seen in the facade. Both buildings facilitated innovative energy-efficiency measures. The double-facade of the four-story, playfully loft-like cube of the architecture building consists of vertical glass elements that are fixed like a fan in front of accessible balconies that manage the daylight levels. These elements create a variable double-skin facade that ensures uninterrupted views of the alpine landscape. And they are also capable of a lot more: They are supported by narrow horizontal steel profiles, which resist the powerful local storms. And they are easy to maintain and permit automatic night-time cooling, while the full-height panels with solar protection coating prevent glare and overheating and divert daylight deep into the interior. Glass also dominates these interiors – in combination with the oak flooring. Transparent open-plan offices structure the office and seminar areas as a series of modules and permit huge flexibility in the layout, with the option of creating extra individual spaces every 2.5 meters.
The inclined glass curtain wall elements create a constantly changing facade surface, whose appearance varies in line with the viewer’s position. The elegantly-restrained institute building now presents much of its artistic inner life to the outside world.
Paul Ohnmacht
Architect, Head of Design in Innsbruck
“Low-tech” and fresh air in the tower
The precise silhouette of the generally refurbished Engineering Sciences Tower, which is located in the flight security corridor of Innsbruck Airport, acts as a landmark for the entire site. It is particularly notable for reducing energy needs by up to 85 %. The architectural redesign reflected the motto “openness and transparency on the inside” and “low-tech and innovation” to the outside. Our concept also includes a series of measures for maximizing energy efficiency. The lifecycle-oriented building services concept encourages the creation of a very dense, compact low-tech building, which is largely naturally ventilated and built in line with the EnerPHit requirement for “passive house standard refurbishment.” One special feature is the fully-automatic ventilation system based on specially developed, wind-resistant top-hinged windows in the tower facade. These can be opened, shaded, and otherwise controlled via the building management system and guarantee the automatic cooling of the interiors.
As the architects and engineers who were commissioned with this complex task we are delighted by the TQB certification from the ÖGNB. This is one of the most important Austrian benchmarks for optimum energetic and ecological qualities.
Hans Kotek
Architect, Lead Project Manager in Innsbruck
We were able to deliver top quality in terms of both design and energy efficiency thanks to the perfect interaction between architecture and structural and building services engineering permitted by ATP’s integrated design process. And the interdisciplinary project team was reinforced at an early stage by experts in the areas of lifecycle cost analysis, energy simulation, and technical feasibility studies.
ATP’s general refurbishment of the Faculties of Architecture and Engineering Sciences of the University of Innsbruck is one of two demonstration objects of “BIGMODERN,” a modernization initiative of the client, the Bundesimmobiliengesellschaft m.b.H. (BIG). It has already received a number of awards, including the Energy Globe Tirol 2016, the TQB (Total Quality Building) Certificate, and klima:aktiv-Standard Gold. In April 2016, the Faculties of Architecture and Engineering Sciences received the “Innovative Building 2016” prize at TU Wien. In September 2016, the Austrian Federal Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology (bmvit) nominated the Engineering Sciences Tower as a pioneering, Europe-wide “Building of the Future Demonstration Project.” In July 2017, the model project was nominated for the “Austrian State Prize for Architecture and Sustainability,” for which it received a “Special Mention.”
