Zurich Apartments Property, Swiss Housing Project, Picture, Design, Architecture

Zurich Architecture : Sempacher Loft Apartments

Residential Buildings Switzerland design by camenzind grafensteiner, Architects

4 Sep 2007

Sempacher Loft Apartments

Location: Zurich, Switzerland

Zurich Loft Apartments

Situated in a sought-after residential area close to the centre of Zurich, the Sempacher Loft Apartments are an excellent example of modern and sustainable town renewal.

An uninspiring apartment block from the 1930s originally occupied the site, which was in urgent need of repair and upgrading. A detailed survey of the building showed that everything from the wiring to the pluming needed replacing. Furthermore, the structure did not allow easy alterations to the cramped room layout. Counting the cost for the required work showed a discrepancy between required rental levels after the upgrade and the overall standard achievable. A feasibility study indicated clear overall advantages in the replacement of the existing building with a new one.

The aim for the new building was therefore to create:
– living structures which allow flexibility and change for future generations;
– a modern building that harmoniously connects to the built environment surrounding it;
– an environmentally-friendly building, taking into account the lifetime cycles of materials.

The building footprint was established by site constraints and sculpted to suit as many different internal space layouts as possible. This was further enhanced by placing the bath and kitchen core in the centre of the apartments as natural room dividers.

The bathroom walls are made of translucent coloured glass allowing the light to connect the divided spaces. The façades reflect the internal layout, and vice versa. The building is clad with translucent overlapping glass ‘shingles‘ over coloured insulation, which cover the whole north façade and gradually open up towards the south façade.

The façade build-up with coloured insulation and translucent cladding was developed on the basis of a harmonious integration with the surrounding apartment blocks, which are rendered in warm colours and textures. Through careful selection of glass texture and translucency, together with the colour of the underlying insulation, the glass loses its natural hardness, allowing soft and emotional connections. Seasonal and diurnal light changes are resonated in subtle transformations in the appearance of the façade, allowing a harmonious integration of the building within its surroundings.

Camenzind Evolutions

Apartments Zurich – Building Information

Title: Loft Apartments, Zurich – Switzerland

Design Team:
Client: Mobimo Verwaltungs AG, Seestrasse 99a, 8702 Zollikon

architects: Camenzind Evolution

project team: Stefan Camenzind, Michael Gräfensteiner, Carmen Martin, Franco Pelizza, Brigitta Würsch

project architect: Susanne Zenker

site supervision: Roland Baumgartner, Wiesenstrasse 2, 8400 Winterthur

structural engineer: Ingenieurbüro W. Glaser, Sempacherstrasse 22, 8032 Zürich

cladding consultant: Läuchli Metallbauplanung AG, Alb.-Zwyssigstrasse 49, 5430 Wettingen

electrical engineer: R. Meuli Elektro AG, Zehntenhausstrasse 19, 8046 Zürich

mechanical engineer: Graf Engineering AG, Unterer Rain 6, 8117 Fällanden

building-physics / acoustics: Wichser Akustik und Bauphysik AG, Schaffhauserstrasse 500, 8052 Zürich

Key Contractor:
building contractor: Gautschi Bau AG, Alte Obfelderstrasse 57, 8910 Affoltern a. A.

Data:
Start of planning: Jan 2000
Start of construction: Apr 2001
Completion: Jul 2002

Costs:
Total Cost: BKP1-9 = 3’593’817.- CHF
Building Cost: BKP2 = 3’163’705.- CHF
Cost per m3: BKP2/m3 SIA 116 = 553.- CHF
Cost per m2: BKP2/ m2 FA = 2’064.- CHF

Zurich Apartments: text authorised by Camenzind Evolution Architecture 040907

Zurich Apartments architects : Camenzind Evolution

Location: Zurich, Switzerland, central Europe