MORE ABOUT: Sport Campus Leidsche Rijn-Utrecht, Netherlands

Architect:   Wiel Arets Architects, Maastricht, Amsterdam, Zurich
Structural Engineer:  ABT, Velp

Leidsche Rijn is on the edge of Utrecht and is one of Holland’s largest new residential developments. The architects felt that “in order to make the school’s presence known in this setting – a blend of fields and low-slung, interchangeable domiciles – its design must be unmistakable iconographic-ally.” A high school and vocational school, each with 900 students, are housed in one building. The four four-storey classroom wings are grouped around a central commons which accommodates the gym and the entrance hall.

            
View from one classroom                                                      View from outside corner

View from courtyard

Structure

Horizontal wall section

Vertical wall section

The primary structural system used was precast concrete. The central volume consists of a thin steel-concrete structure, carrying four large roof beams, from which a number of floors of this building are suspended.

The roof consists 50 mm balsalt grave, 280 cast-in-place concrete in compression, 80 mm semi-prefabricated filigree in tension counter battens with 19 mm mineral-wood fiberboard and  50mm foam-glass insulation.

The wall consists 3500/1650 parapet concrete sandwich element with acrylic spray coating, 110-210 mm outer shell, 25mm surface projections, 120 polystyrene rigid-foam thermal insulation and 220 mm reinforced-concrete inner shell.  The horizontal cross-section of the outer shell ranges from 110 to 210 mm. Because these elements are offset, a thin end always rests on a thick one. As a result, the elements protrude slightly at the bearing points.

Special detail

Immaculate concrete surface with black, acrylic spray-coating:
         
A: d19mm projections at end of gradation
B: d84mm projections at beginning of gradation
C: Mould: positive aluminum master mould, CNC laser cut. A polyester casting is made of this form, which in turn serves as negative mould for the concrete elements.

(Source: “Sports Campus in Utrecht” DETAIL 4  (2009): 378 -382. Print.)
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