Sustainable facades for energy and technology park in Trier, Germany

Environmentally friendly new building
Since the new building boasts excellent sound insulation, all three planned rehearsal stages can be used simultaneously. While the building's function posed a new challenge, sustainability stood as the main focus for this project, as is the case with all construction projects on the Grüneberg in Trier. Architect and Project Manager Michael Oberhoffer says: "We are using a floor slab that only needs to be extended. Later in the process, we use as much timber as possible. We also determine the construction of the wall and ceilings based on being able to separate, dismantle and recycle the materials when the building needs to be demolished or replaced. We also install as many photovoltaic solar panels on the roof as possible to generate electricity for the building. As with the entire ETP, heat is generated at the neighbouring sewage treatment plant." This means that the new building uses the same principle as the older, renovated buildings: waste of building materials is avoided, recyclable building structures are used and electricity and heat is generated in a sustainable and CO2-neutral way for all buildings.

Eco-effective expansion and conversion 
When building the ETP, the requirements of the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB) were taken into account from the start. Most of the buildings were expanded and remodelled in an eco-effective manner based on the Cradle to Cradle® principle. Thanks to this principle and the buildings being self-sufficient and CO2-neutral, the DGNB issued a gold pre-certificate to the ETP Trier and the site is now categorised as a 'sustainable commercial district'.
Project Manager and Architect Christian Reinert, Head of Property Development at SWT, tells more about the sustainable cladding: We chose robust and weather-resistant cladding made from sustainable raw materials for the exterior of the building. One of the materials used for the stone wool insulation and cladding  is basalt. At ROCKWOOL's factory, offcuts and old material from the demolition of old buildings are turned into new products, contributing to the circular economy. The paint used for the panels is water-based, UV-resistant, dirt-repellent, non-flammable and very durable. Because of all these advantages, they also require little maintenance."

Low-maintenance facades installed in-house 
Stadtwerke Trier's metal workshop installed the panels. According to the employees involved, cutting and fixing the panels proved to be swift and straightforward. Oberhoffer highlights, "The ventilation at the back of the building has a positive effect on the climate inside the building. All panels were fixed to an aluminium substructure. The whole process is very simple. Because Rockpanel supplies the rivet heads in the same colour as the panels, they are almost invisible." 

Unique colour design for every building 
SWT's planning team drew up a plan for cutting the panels to size and choosing the buildings’ colours. Architect and Project Manager Reinert says: "Of course we wanted the buildings to look harmonious, but it was also important that the building types were easily distinguishable from a distance. We achieved this by giving the administration buildings, workshops and warehouses different shades of green from the wide range from the Rockpanel Colours range. To still be able to give the buildings a modern touch, we combined these colours with light or medium grey." 

Architect and Project Manager Reinert explains, “The panels were mounted vertically in different widths and in three strips. For tall buildings, they were mounted in four strips. This allowed us to keep waste to a minimum. Many of the panels were Rockpanel's standard length. From the corners of the buildings, we used the panels completely, for half or a third of the width. Although the buildings all look different, you can still find a consistent design for all the buildings of the ETP Park."