Among German cities, Pforzheim is renowned for its natural rather than its architectural beauty. After being largely destroyed in the Second World War, the town located on the northern outskirts of the Black Forest was rebuilt, above all, as a car-friendly place.
The nine-storey residential housing block, that Deutsche Bundesbahn built for its more senior railway officials in 1970, has marked the entrance to Nordstadt for the last 45 years. The apartments, each with a floor area of 90 m², were very spacious for those days, and therefore still meet today’s needs extremely well. Nevertheless, in terms of aesthetics and energy matters, the building was in desperate need of refurbishment: the windows were draughty and the exterior walls were clad with asbestos cement panels that only contained a three-centimetre core of mineral insulation.
The load-bearing capacity of the concrete construction, on the other hand, could have supported at least three extra storeys. The upgrade only saw the addition of a single one; however, one that is quite a bit higher than the other levels, thus, visibly improving the proportions of the residential housing block. The modest style of the architecture hides the fact that the refurbishment was an extremely challenging endeavour.
The nine-storey residential housing block, that Deutsche Bundesbahn built for its more senior railway officials in 1970, has marked the entrance to Nordstadt for the last 45 years. The apartments, each with a floor area of 90 m², were very spacious for those days, and therefore still meet today’s needs extremely well. Nevertheless, in terms of aesthetics and energy matters, the building was in desperate need of refurbishment: the windows were draughty and the exterior walls were clad with asbestos cement panels that only contained a three-centimetre core of mineral insulation.
The load-bearing capacity of the concrete construction, on the other hand, could have supported at least three extra storeys. The upgrade only saw the addition of a single one; however, one that is quite a bit higher than the other levels, thus, visibly improving the proportions of the residential housing block. The modest style of the architecture hides the fact that the refurbishment was an extremely challenging endeavour.