MONT-CENIS TRAINING CENTER

Herne-Sodingen, Germany

1991-1999

Jourda & Perraudin Architectes, Jourda Architectes, Hegger Hegger Schleiff Planer + Architekten

The Mont-Cenis training center synthesizes many green strategies, as well as pioneering the 'micro-climatic envelope,' whose vast interior shelters a microcosm of urban life. It was built as part of the larger project of regenerating Germany's once mighty industrial Ruhr. The ambitious, Ruhr-wide Emscher Park IBA (International Building Exhibition) is replacing the economically depressed, toxically contaminated legacy of the past with a vision of a verdant future respectful of ecological principles. The new structure, built where the mine head of the Mont-Cenis coal mine once stood, is used for short residential training courses and also brings employment and civic facilities to the newly amalgamated towns of Herne and Sodingen. These are located in two rows of buildings flanking a tapering central street sheltered within the 123,000 square-foot glass shed. This micro-climatic envelope--a hybrid of greenhouse and Greek temple, combining a high-tech skin with motorized openings and timber structure whose tree-trunk columns are exposed along an open front porch-- serves several purposes. Inside, it achieves in northern Europe a Mediterranean climate where an 'outdoor' life can be enjoyed, protected from the rain and cold. The roof and west elevation are covered with 100,000 square feet of photovoltaic cells, which generate two and a half times the energy consumed by the complex. Even without the photovoltaics, however, the strategy achieves considerable economies in energy use. Notwithstanding the vast size of the external envelope in relation to the inner buildings, the Training Center was economical to build. The inner structures do not have to be built to high standards of insulation and weather exclusion, and the envelope itself is clad in the most economical module of single glazing. Materials used are from local sources where possible. The 50-foot high by 16-inch diameter pine trunks used for columns are from nearby forests, as is the wood for the laminated timber trusses and the deciduous wood cladding the inner buildings. The glass is from even closer by, as are the photovoltaic cells, from a factory made viable by this contract and now part of Emscher Park's green future. Shades of green: Low energy/high performance; replenishable sources; recycling; embodied energy; long life, loose fit; total life cycle costing; access and urban context; health and happiness; community and connection

[both photos by Paul Raftery]