New school building on the Plateau de Diesse, Prêles
2023
Between 2021 and 2023, a new school building made entirely of wood was constructed in Prêles. Swiss timber from the municipality was used by means of in-house procurement, Timbatec was responsible for the timber construction engineering work and building physics.
The project
The new school building is located on the plateau of the village of Prêles, where a natural ice rink used to form during prolonged and severe cold spells. Ideally positioned on a hill, the building offers a marvellous view of the natural surroundings of the village and the recreational areas of the region. The decision to use local timber for the construction was present from the very first project meetings and exchange discussions. The experience of the Timbatec office then proved to be a great advantage in the development of the project. Currently, 1159 tons of CO2 are stored in the structure of the new building, which comprises a total of around 2800 m2 of school, extracurricular and office space.
The construction
The structure is designed according to a post-and-beam principle. The load-bearing elements are made entirely of timber, including the cores of the vertical circulation, which are made of encapsulated CLT panels. A wood/wood ribbed ceiling, supplemented by a weighting layer that allows partial integration of the building services, offers a fast execution and perfectly fulfils the sound insulation requirements.
The challenge
The successful integration of local timber into the construction was of great importance for the realisation of the project. A timber quality test with representative samples of the specimens found in the selected forest allowed conclusions to be drawn about the existing qualities for the realisation of the project.
Construction Data
- Above-ground building volumel: 12'700 m3
- Wooden surfaces: 3'468 m2
- Net volume of timber used: 1'093 m3
Construction costs
- BKP 1-9: 14.3 millions CHF TTC
- BKP 214: 2.6 millions CHF TTC
- BKP 214: 205 CHF/m3 TTC
Services of Timbatec
- SIA Phase 31 Preliminary project
- SIA Phase 32 Construction project
- SIA Phase 41 Tender and comparison of offers
- SIA Phase 51 Implementation project
- SIA Phase 52 Execution
- SIA Phase 53 Commissioning
- Statics and construction
- Specialist planning for building physics
- Cost estimate
- Managing, coordinating and controlling the flow of timber from felling in the forest to assembly on site.
Client
Commune du Plateau de Diesse
2515 Prêles
Architect
Riforma architecture SA
1700 Fribourg
Timber construction engineer
Timbatec SA ingénieur bois
2800 Delémont
Timber construction
Charpentes Vial SA
1724 Le Mouret
Wood gluing
JPF-Ducret SA
1430 Orges
Supply of multilayer panels
Schilliger Holz SA
6403 Kusnacht
Buildings made of Swiss wood – there are many good reasons
Zürcher Wald | Focus on the future of timber construction | July 2024 – Large quantities of Swiss timber from the municipal forest on the Plateau de Diesse were actively brought into the project and used by the client through in-house procurement.
Sustainability and efficiency in school construction
MODULØR, Issue 3/2024 – Educational buildings made of wood. The new building project on the Plateau de Diesse impressively demonstrates the efficiency of wood when used in school construction and underlines the numerous resulting advantages. (Report in german)
