Schott provides transparent fire protection for timber projects

A magnificent, timber structure forming the new occupational education centre in Austria has used Schott’s Pyranova safety glass, to ensure extremely high levels of fire and safety protection for the landmark public building.

Architects’ Fink & Thurnher from Bregenz won the competition to design the building, which sees the Altmünster AgrarBildungsZentrum (ABZ) join the agricultural vocational school in Altmünster (boys) and Weyregg (girls), at Altmünster LWBFS, which was built in 1954.

The new occupational education centre combines the existing building with a new structure into one architectural unit in the shape of a traditional four sided courtyard. The building, constructed mainly of timber, is a landmark visible from afar - its light and transparent structure stands for open and honest communication between teachers and students.

The ABZ in the Salzkammergut region was erected as a 70 x 70 m four sided building with 12,300 square metres floor space over three floors. “It was not our intention to replicate a four sided farm house but to strive for a contemporary interpretation of this type of building in order to raise the students’ awareness of this topic. Their agriculture studies will mark our cultural region in the future,” explained Markus Thurnher at the opening of the ABZ.

Their design drew upon the existing style of four sided farms, typical of the area, as the ideal type of rural construction with the addition of a timber structure. However, timber is not only used in the structure of the building, it also dominates the interior. Installed untreated it reflects light throughout the building as well as having a pine scent to enhance the occupants well being. It was thus all the more important, and also stipulated in the tender, that the design concept be accompanied by a comprehensive fire protection strategy.

This was achieved through the use of Pyranova - a special fire protection glass. A magnificent floor to ceiling glass wall was erected with a fire protection rating of EI30, which separates the hallway from the administration area, along with 3m high fixed glazing consisting of four 1400 mm wide special glass panes all connected using butt joints with an almost invisible silicone seal.

Fixed glazing with Pyranova 30 in the butt joint system enables the construction of virtually endless glass walls without any frames to block the view.

Pyranova is a clear, multi-pane composite for fire protection meeting requirements for fire resistance classification EI (integrity & insulation), to prevent the spread of fire, smoke and thermal radiation.

Depending on the fire-resistance classification, Pyranova consists of at least two panes of float glass with a transparent fire protection interlayer. In the event of fire, the pane facing the fire cracks and the interlayer foams up creating a heat shield.

Pyranova can be used as fire protection glass in the resistance categories from EI 15 up to EI 120. It is also possible to meet additional requirements with special designs; for example for the ABZ project at the junction of two fire screens, for additional safety, the floor to ceiling glazing of the meeting rooms was combined with safety glass on the side facing the hallway.

The transparent fire protection glazing was specially tested and approved for the building by the Materials Testing Authority of Vienna, whilst the 2.7 m high wooden fire protection doors were also tested and approved.

Due to the shape of the terrain, the bottom floor is below ground level one side. Its walls and columns are built as a reinforced concrete structure with high quality finishes and with a concrete composite floor. The ceiling, also made of concrete, was fitted with a false ceiling of split panels for enhanced sound insulation creating a link to the timber structure of the upper floors.

The ABZ building is an excellent example of how large scale projects can also make ecological sense. Due to the compact building envelope and the excellent heat transfer coefficients of the components used, the entire building (old and new structures) meets the requirements of a passive house.

For its holistic approach and effective implementation, the ABZ was awarded not only the Austrian Timber Construction Prize 2012 in the category ‘Commercial and Public Buildings,’ but it also received a special prize of Energy Efficiency and Regional Value Creation.