Notable
Features |
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Reuse
of the external facades of the existing buildings, avoiding total demolition
of the building and minimizing the generation of demolition waste. |
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Rehabilitation
of industrial architecture symbols, and therefore revitalization of an old
industrial zone. |
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Basic
Information |
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Location: Simmering
industrial zone, Vienna, Austria. |
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Architects:
Jean Nouvel, Coop Himmelb(l)au, Manfred Wedhorn, Wilhelm Holzbauer |
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MEP Engineers:
SEG-Stadterneuerungs-und, EigentumswohnungsgesmbH, Doka Industrie GmbH |
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Contract Budget: 150 million
Euros |
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Date
of original building construction: 1896/ 1899 |
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Date
of conversion competition: 1995 |
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Project
and construction date: 1999/2001 |
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Uses
and floor areas by gasometer: |
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Jean Nouvel:
Commercial space (7500m2), office space (5400m2), and
apartments (128 units). |
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Coop Himmelb(I)au:
Underground auditorium (3000 seats), commercial space (4680m2), and
apartments (254 units, plus 76 students residences). |
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Manfred Wedhorn:
Commercial space (4700m2), office space (5400m2), and
apartments (92 units). |
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Wilhelm Holzbauer:
Office space (15500m2) and apartments (141 units). |
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Total floor areas: |
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- Commercial space: 16,880m2 |
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- Office space: 26,000m2 |
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- Apartment: 615 units and
76 student residences |
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- Underground auditorium:
3000 seats |
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History
of the Building |
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In
1892, an international competition was announced for new city gasworks in
Vienna.
An
engineer from Berlin (Germany) called Schimming won the competition, and in
1896 Theodor Herrmann, a technical consultant in gas engineering was
appointed. The construction started on 27th October 1896. The city
engineer’s department along with Franz Kapaun undertook management of the
construction. The construction of the four gasometers was accomplished by July
17th 1899, and opened on 31st October 1899.
When
they were built, the gasometers were the largest in Europe. They remained in
service until 1986. In 1981, they had been listed by the country’s heritage
ministry as outstanding examples of industrial architecture. |
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Description
of the Building |
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The
four gasometers are identically constructed in bricks and stand as row pairs.
There are cylindrical constructions with an external diameter of 64.9 m. Above
a 1.7 m deep foundation of concrete, sits a 12m high ring of brickwork with an
internal diameter of 62.8m, which forms the walls to the water tank. This wall
is 5.4m wide at the base and 1.65m wide at the top. The dome shape roof spans
63.6m, and is comprised of an iron structure with a timber decking clad in
zinc sheet.
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