Albert Schweitzer School: timber construction replaces dilapidated pavilions

The wooden façade is finished with anti-graffiti protection. The house with its slightly pitched roof has wood-aluminum windows with external sun protection and aluminum access doors with generous fanlights. The upper floor can be reached via an external staircase.

Inside, mineral fiber ceilings ensure good room acoustics. High-quality wooden doors help to reduce noise emissions. The floors are covered with colored linoleum and the walls are clad with brightly wallpapered plasterboard. Warning alarms react to excessive CO2 levels in the air. The building is heated with district heating from the main building. It is drained via a new connection to the sewer in Waldstrasse, which was laid underground in a tunnel construction so as not to have to tear up the road and thereby impair traffic.

The two-storey wooden building replaces two old pavilions from the 1970s that can no longer be renovated from an economic point of view. Head of Schools and Building Paul-Gerhard Weiß speaks of a "permanent extension" in which eight classes can be taught from December. There was only room for four classes in the pavilions.

"We have not only replaced two pavilions in a poor structural and energy-related condition," says the city councillor. "In view of the increasing demand for grammar school places, we are ensuring that the Albert Schweitzer School can continue to accommodate six classes with better room facilities."

The Albert Schweitzer School, which originally had four classes and dates back to a "school for secondary girls" founded in 1830, is now attended by over 1,200 pupils and now has six classes. "We are looking forward to the new building," says acting principal Barbara Lorz. "The additional classrooms will ease the situation at our school somewhat."

The city of Offenbach has invested 2.97 million euros in the new building. Work began in June, initially with the demolition of the pavilions, removal of contaminated sites and soil replacement, followed by the construction of a new foundation base.

Thanks to the high level of prefabrication of the components, the building was completed just six months later, at the end of November. The school plans to move into it with three ninth grade classes and five tenth grade classes before the start of the Christmas vacations.

"A building like this is not a makeshift structure, but a high-quality school building with a normal life cycle," explains OPG division manager Božica Niermann. Wood is playing an increasingly important role as a building material for new buildings in the daycare and school sector, especially when time is of the essence. "Timber construction is ecologically sustainable and beneficial in terms of building physics and indoor climate. It also offers the possibility of shortening construction times thanks to the high degree of prefabrication," says the OPG authorized signatory. This is also important in view of the scarce resources in the construction industry.

Back in 2017, the city of Offenbach built its first daycare center in Rumpenheim on Lachwiesen Street with a solid timber shell construction. The Brandenburger Straße daycare center (11) in Rumpenheim is also currently being replaced by a timber construction. And the old existing building of the Rödernstraße daycare center (3) in Offenbach's city center is also currently being replaced by a modern new building made of wood.

December 6, 2019