The site of the Integrated Comprehensive School is located on Burgfeldsweide, in the south of the city centre of Rinteln (Lower Saxony). The clearly designed, geometric structure is designed for up to 900 pupils and complements the existing grammar school on the school grounds. With its calm, rectangular shape, the two-storey new building forms an urban contrast to the existing structure. The façade is made of larch wood, which was extracted from the client's own forestry business. On the side facing the schoolyard, the 112-metre-long new building has a continuous open entrance zone, which serves as an inviting gesture, covered break area, communication area and access to the various learning clusters. This inviting entrance creates barrier-free access to a bright and friendly school building.
The internal structure of the new building is also clear and uncluttered: a plinth with specialist rooms and administrative offices supports three rectangular double clusters, which are divided and lit by four inner courtyards. The IGS was designed to be barrier-free, integrative and sustainable. It is realised as a dismountable solid timber construction with a timber frame façade, whereby almost all load-bearing and structural elements remain visible in the interior. In this way, timber construction becomes an integral part of the design approach. A pleasant room atmosphere and the feel of the materials are combined with efficient production, short construction times and a future-oriented energy concept.
The project has been honoured with numerous awards. These include 1st prize at the Lower Saxony Timber Construction Award 2022 and the nomination as a finalist for the German Sustainability Award for Architecture 2023. It also received recognition in the national competition Holzbauplus 2022/23 and the German Architecture Award 2023. Other honors include the award at the BDA Prize Lower Saxony 2023 and inclusion in the shortlist of the Heinze Architecture AWARD 2023.
Source: Bez + Kock Architekten Generalplaner GmbH
Photos: Marcus Ebener
ISOMETRY+Parts of the drawings: Jonathan Bach, Sergio Palacio Herrero
The preparatory work for this project publication was carried out as part of the building construction theory in the seminar FACADE 4.0 at the FATUK of the RPTU through student work by Jonathan Bach and Sergio Palacio Herrero.
