Extension to primary school building, Aeschi bei Spiez
2019
The primary school building in the Lower Simmental of the Canton of Bern has reached the limits of its capacity. Wood from the community's own forests could be used for the extension.
The project
The primary school building in Aeschi bei Spiez was extended by a new three-story building in timber construction. The new part of the schoolhouse contains classrooms, group rooms, workrooms and space for a kindergarten. The three floors above ground were built entirely in wood. The base and basement levels were concreted. During the construction of the building, thought was already given to the future: the interior walls are non-load-bearing and thus allow maximum flexibility of use. In addition, all components are dimensioned in such a way that the school building can be extended by one floor at a later date. For this purpose, the forces are largely transferred via the wooden columns that are clamped at the bottom and run through the entire height of the building.
The construction
The extension building cleverly combines the solid wood and frame construction methods: All load-bearing walls and the floor slabs are made of glulam in solid wood construction. The interior walls are non-load-bearing frame structures. Largely knot-free fir boards were used for the facades.
The challenge
Due to the use of the community's own timber, the planning took place very early: Already at the time of cutting the trees, Timbatec had to provide a rough work planning. This ensured that the correct cross-sections could be obtained from the trees in the municipal forest. Another exciting aspect of this project was the fire protection solutions: The vertical escape routes are designed as encapsulated wooden structures.
Construction Data
- Glued laminated timber 630 m3
- three-layer boards 900 m2
- Gypsum fiberboards 1050 m2
Construction costs
- BKP 1-9: 8 million CHF
- BKP 2: 6.792 million CHF
- BKP 214: 1.396 mio. CHF
Services of Timbatec
- SIA Phase 31 Preliminary design
- SIA Phase 32 Construction project
- SIA Phase 41 Tendering and comparison of offers
- SIA Phase 51 Implementation project
- SIA Phase 52 Execution
- Statics and construction
- Fire protection Quality assurance QSS2
- Site supervision and site inspections
Architect
JAGGI FREI BRÜGGER
3714 Frutigen
Timber engineer
Timbatec Holzbauingenieure (Schweiz) AG Bern
3012 Bern
Civil Engineer
Ramu Ingenieure AG
3714
Frutigen
Building physics
Weber Energie und Bauphysik AG
3011 Bern
Building owner
Gemischte Gemeinde Aeschi, 3703 Aeschi b. Spiez
Timber construction
ARGE Däpp Holzbau GmbH; Bärtschi Bau AG
ARGE Cotting GmbH; Zurbuchen Holzbau und Sägerei AG, 3703 Aeschi b. Spiez
Facade
Müller Bernhard, 3703 Aeschi b. Spiez
School buildings today are built of wood
Immobilien im BlickPunkt, Issue No. 01/2023 – Wooden buildings have a good learning climate, are more climate-friendly than comparable projects made of steel and concrete, and are even faster to build. That is why building owners often opt for wood. If the wood comes from Switzerland, this has a particularly positive effect on the climate balance.
CITY OF WOOD VIII
Espazium, City of Wood, Issue No. 8/2022 – Two of the UN's 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) - the context in which our next issues of «City of Wood» will be published - concern health and education.
Skillfully combine competencies
die baustellen, Issue No. 10/2021 – Wood as a building and construction material offers technical, ecological and economic advantages. In order to use these advantages in an ideal way, specific knowledge is required, also from architects and engineers. For these professionals, the Bern University of Applied Sciences offers the CAS Building with Wood. (Report in German)
The Aeschi school building was originally planned in steel and concrete
BEO Holz, Annual Report 2020 – The old school building in Aeschi bei Spiez, built in 1909, has reached the limits of its capacity. A new three-story building in timber construction is now extending the school building. Originally, a project made of reinforced concrete was planned. Thanks to the persuasion of various stakeholders, a modern wooden building - with wood from the surrounding community forests - now stands next to the old school building. (Report in German)
Use of wood as a logical «consequence of public procuremen»
Schweizer Gemeinden, issue No. 11/2020 - Timber construction is booming and the demand for Swiss timber is high. Swiss timber also meets the criterion of sustainability, which is central to the new procurement law from 2021. Nevertheless, there are a few things to consider when it comes to procurement. (Report in german)
School buildings today are made of wood!
The primary school in the Frutigtal valley of the canton of Bern has reached the limits of its capacity. For the extension, the municipality has opted for wood from the surrounding forests. An opportunity for regional companies and for the environment. Read the report by Simon Meier. (Report in German)
School buildings today are made of wood
BS Issue 03/20 - Over a quarter of all newly built school buildings are wooden buildings. There are good reasons for this: In A timber construction has a particularly good learning climate, it is much more climate-friendly than a comparable project made of steel and concrete - and usually even cheaper. (Report in German)
