Integrated secondary school Wartiner Straße, Berlin, Germany

The project

A new integrated secondary school for up to 725 pupils was to be built in the growing Berlin district of Lichtenberg. Architect Ulrike Vogel from the responsible architectural firm NAK Architekten describes the challenge: "It was clear from the outset that our design had to be as compact as possible due to the limited plot of land and the requirement to construct a three-court sports hall and a sports field with a running track in addition to the actual school building."

The implementation

The required compactness was achieved by moving the school and sports hall slightly away from each other and then reconnecting them with a school street that runs through both buildings. This also gives the ensemble a clear division of the outdoor spaces into schoolyard, sports field and forecourt - and blends harmoniously into the urban context. In addition, a surrounding plinth emphasizes the visual cohesion of the two buildings.

The formliner

A textured formliner from our RECKLI SELECT series was used for this. Ulrike Vogel describes the idea behind it as follows: "We were looking for a robust, durable and cost-effective solution that would also form a nice contrast to the upper part of the façade. In close consultation with the client, RECKLI and the precast plant Geithner Bau, the decision was finally made in favor of the textured formliner 1/316 B Pennsilva." At the same time, a sand-colored tone was chosen for the precast concrete elements, which makes the façade appear friendlier, brighter and less brutalist. Another advantage: our rib-like pattern with a coarse fracture structure is not particularly suitable for graffiti.