Renovation multipurpose hall

07.06.2022

In the 1970s, the army had a great need for new multi-purpose buildings and had 2 types of halls developed for this purpose. These buildings are getting on in years and are being renovated and strengthened against earthquakes. Two construction projects have been completed.

Today, the real estate portfolio of «armasuisse Immobilien» contains 30 multipurpose halls of type 71 and seven halls of type 76. These multipurpose halls were built between 1969 and 1992 and in some cases show defects and signs of age which now have to be renovated. A baseline report shows that several halls no longer meet today's seismic safety specifications. In the course of the renovation work, the halls will be structurally strengthened. 

Multipurpose halls type 71 

The halls were built at various locations in Switzerland according to the same basic system with some variation in the design. In each case, the steel frame structure is continuous from the outside to the inside and is lined with sand-lime brick wall panels clad with Eternit. The steel girders visible from the outside give the building its clear grid. The dressing room wing is mostly brick. 

Coherent renovation 

The armory in Payerne has several multi-purpose halls. After decades of operation, the first hall had various defects and was in need of a major technical and structural overhaul. A complete renovation was therefore necessary, which was planned by Haller Gut Architekten AG in 2016. Timbatec was allowed to accompany this renovation as a timber engineer and was able to apply its experience to the renovation of the second multi-purpose hall on the same armory site. The refurbishment of HUM2, the second hall in Payerne, was planned by LZA Architekten.

Facade and bracing 

The infill panels between the steel frames were removed and replaced by prefabricated wooden elements. They stiffen the hall so that it meets today's structural requirements. On the inside, the steel beams remain visible, which shapes the hall space through the grid of filigree steel frames. In this way, all elements were planned around the existing steel frame. The exterior facade is characterized by the vertically mounted wooden formwork.

Interiors 

A lot of daylight enters the hall space through the two large glass surfaces on the long sides. The wall panels as well as the roof were made of prefabricated elements with 3-layer panels of spruce wood, which are perforated to improve the acoustics. The atmosphere of the multipurpose hall is characterized by the warm color of the wood. The newly concreted staircase received more transparency across the floors due to the enlarged stair eye. The new windows created interesting diagonal views and spatial references.