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Spanning the USA – or how Layher scaffolding is propping up a canyon
More precisely, this refers to the "MyZeil" multifunction/shopping center, designed by Rome's star architect Massimiliano Fuksas as part of the wider "PalaisQuartier" project. The center got its nickname from its exterior – in the truest sense of the word: the eight-storey building is spanned by an impressive self-supporting roof of steel and glass with a total area of around 12,000 square meters. The translucent glass-covered steel skin in a lozenge pattern passes through ceiling openings right down into the deeper levels of the building as a kind of spatial sculpture, so that the shopping landscape is reminiscent of a canyon.
The scaffolding for support, protection and construction, assembled by the scaffolding construction company Teupe & Söhne Gerüstbau GmbH of Stadtlohn to allow building of the three-dimensional steel and glass roof, has a volume of more than 90,000 square meters. It serves as a protective work platform for the steelwork erectors, welders, glass workers and fireproof coating specialists. A scaffolding structure that was and still is a challenge, not only from the engineering viewpoint, but in its timing too: the supporting scaffolding for the steel/glass roof first had to be adjusted with millimeter precision to the three-dimensional architectural concept. Then the steel parts were hoisted there, in dimensions up to 2.50 meters wide for ease of handling, and welded together. As soon as the steel structure was self-supporting, a particular challenge had to be faced: as the support scaffolding was lowered, extremely high horizontal load shifts resulting in deformations of up to ten centimeters had to be taken into account. Another factor to be considered was the successive glass covering of the steel structure, which for scheduling reasons had to be done both before and after lowering of the support scaffolding. The horizontal loads resulting from the larger wind-exposed areas of the glass roof, at angles from 10° to 90°, have to be sustained mainly by the scaffolding structure itself, since there are hardly any ways to anchor it in the building.
The company is using Layher Falsework and Allround scaffolding equipment, which is unlimited in its applications thanks to its comprehensive range of parts. "When it comes to loading capacity, precision fitting and speed of assembly, Layher products are ideal for this out-of-the-ordinary project," reports the managing director, Josef Teupe. That's because another slogan here could be "Timing is everything". To ensure a rapid start, two structural engineers and two CAD experts from Teupe handled the scaffolding planning work in parallel with the scaffolding construction. This meant that scaffolding construction could start just 15 working days after the enquiry was received – and 20 to 40 erectors have been busy every day in several shifts since work started on 30 April 2008. Material delivery also has to be precisely timed, i.e. "just in time", since there are no possibilities for storing it in the pedestrian zone, where on the "Zeil" alone 14,000 people pass by every single hour. In this situation, Teupe has to rely on Layher's delivery capacities. Thanks to standardized production, the material is available at all times in large stocks, from which it can be delivered at short notice to the customer or to the site using Layher's express delivery service. And if things have to move even faster, a close-knit network of branches and delivery warehouses are available to respond to immediate needs. "Just in time" also applied to the end of the scaffolding work: it was to continue until the opening date of the shopping center on 26 February 2009.
The glass roofscape offers visitors not only extraordinary views into and out of all levels, but also onto the neighbouring building of the "PalaisQuartier". This inner city project, significant for Europe as a whole, has a varied architecture combining the old and the new: besides the futuristic shopping center, the area of 1.7 hectares in size – in the heart of the city between Grosse Eschenheimer Strasse and the main shopping street, the "Zeil" – also contains two high-rise buildings, an office tower about 135 meters high and a hotel tower nearly 100 meters high. And of course there is the baroque Thurn und Taxis Palais, reconstructed on its historical model, from which the overall complex takes its name. By the autumn of 2009, the entire "PalaisQuartier", costing around one billion euros, will be open, offering a wide range of experiences: working, shopping, relaxing, leisure and living. And the calculation of its owners will pay off: 90 percent of the 90 shop units in total in "MyZeil" are already rented out, despite a record price per square meter of up to 485 euros.
In charge of PR enquiries or contacts with the press:
Ms. Andrea Beisswenger
E-Mail Andrea.Beisswenger@layher.com
Telephone +49 71 35 / 70-0
Fax +49 71 35 / 7070-422
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