Association School, Volkach, Germany

Renovation instead of rebuilding

A new appearance was needed – and after more than 4 decades without major updates, a general renovation was decided upon. In addition to updating the building services and fire protection systems, the windows, roof and facade also had to be brought up to current energy standards. A conscious decision was made not to construct a new building. Reinhold Jäcklein – whose architecture firm Jäcklein Architekten was responsible for the renovation – explained the reasons for this in an interview with the magazine Unterfränkische Schule: 
“You have to look at things carefully when deciding whether to preserve a building or demolish it and build a new one. Maintaining a building along with its ‘grey energy’ is often more economical or sustainable than a new construction.” Another challenge for the architect: the conversion and renovation were carried out during day-to-day operations.

A new envelope for House III

As a first step, the building envelope was renovated for energy efficiency. To do this, the jointing material containing PCBs had to be removed first, and this was followed by mineral insulation. Structural changes were also made to the typical concrete beams, as Jäcklein explains:
“Since these thermally continuous concrete beams act as cooling fins, condensation would appear on the inside after the energy-related renovation of the facade, along with the formation of mould. That’s why we had the concrete ribs cut off.” Exterior blinds now provide cooling and shading for the classrooms. 

Simply unique: RECKLI UNIQUE

The facade shines in new splendour after the renovation work. And there is no longer any trace of the 70s brutalism. Instead, the exterior walls now feature a playful, geometric pattern complemented by a custom concrete structure over 80 m2. RECKLI formliners were used for this concrete structure – the geometric pattern of the rest of the facade is consistently continued with diamonds and squares. Because in addition to the textured formliners of the RECKLI SELECT series, RECKLI UNIQUE can be used to create unique designs that fully correspond to the ideas of our customers. The success of the facade design was also confirmed by the Baumit Life Challenge jury in 2022 – when they awarded the Volkach Association School the Life Challenge Award for the best facade as the winner of the “Thermal Renovation” category.