The laboratory and office building of the sewage institute is located at the northern edge of the Köln-Stammhein district and currently forms an L-shaped ensemble consisting of two volumes.
The building to be designed is the analytical laboratory of the sewage institute of Stadtentwässerungsbetriebe Köln, which shall replace the existing laboratory building, which is in serious need of refurbishment. On the approx. 2,000 m² site, StEB Köln wants an “innovative and sustainable laboratory building based on most recent design aspects” and a “high-quality architecture with a sophisticated design”.
After a semi-open competition according to RAW 2004 with a preceding EU-wide application process, the award-winners have now been determined: the 1st prize has been awarded to Kister Scheithauer Gross Architekten und stadtplaner GmbH (ksg). The design won through against the projects by 16 top-class participants.
The jury, which also included Franz-Josef Höing in his function as chairman of the board of directors of StEB Köln, unanimously recommended to commission ksg as the originator of the winning design with the further processing according to the competition brief. Compliant with VOF, all three prize winners are invited to participate in the negotiated procedure subsequent to the competition. The meeting for the negotiated procedure will presumably take place in September.
The results of the competition will be considered in the assessment with 70 % and those of the negotiated procedure with 30 %. The design concept is based on a solitary building with an independent geometric shape. The one-storey volume with a circular roof structure accommodating building service installations takes up the corporeal quality of the technical buildings and can thus fulfil its function as well as its figurative effect as a distinctive technical complex.
The punched metal façade as a layer in front of the actual building envelope provides exciting views both to and from the inside. According to the jury statement, “the concept impresses with its astounding simplicity and high level of functionality combined with a great spatial and design quality”.