Urban design meets sustainability – this concept is not only evident in the learning and teaching that takes place at the Schubart Gymnasium school in Aalen. Designed by Liebel/Architekten BDA and opened in 2019, the new construction of the zero-energy classroom block has received ‘Climate Positive’ certification from DGNB and the German Design Award 2021 and has also been nominated for the German Sustainability Award after several architectural awards, such as the German Federal Prize for Environment and Building. The lightflooded building not only impresses with its purist, minimalist look, but also with an architectural and climate concept based on the active use of existing natural resources. The building generates as much energy as it consumes over the course of the year. The flooring for the new building also needed to be high-quality and sustainable. Architects and users opted for norament® satura rubber flooring.
With their pale grey tone and attractive hammerblow surface, the square-metre tiles blend perfectly into the minimalist design concept and ideally complement the light grey furniture and wooden chairs. They are also particularly durable and easy to clean. norament® satura stairtreads in the same colour were installed in the staircase leading from the foyer.
The new classroom block is a hybrid construction of
wood and concrete. Thanks to this design, it was possible
to increase the proportion of daylight in the building by
more than 50 percent. This is not only pleasant for students
and teachers; it also requires less energy for lighting.
The floor covering brings additional brightness to the
building. “Thanks to its light colour, norament® satura
reflects daylight and thus contributes to significantly
better room lighting,” explained project manager Steffen
Kainzbauer from Liebel/Architekten BDA. In addition to
the attractive design of the rubber floor covering, its robustness and cost-effective maintenance were the
deciding factors. “The hammerblow surface is very
hard-wearing and easy to maintain, which is also the
feedback we always receive from the cleaning service
providers of the properties we build,” explained building
representative, Tobias Wessely. “The somewhat higher
purchase price of norament® floor coverings pays for
itself over the long service life through easy cleaning
and the fact that they do not have to be permanently
coated.” As Wessely knows from experience, regular
recoating, as is sometimes the case with other elastic
coverings, often poses problems, especially for larger
buildings or rooms with permanent furniture.
Colour-coded stairtreads
The central staircase was fitted with norament® satura
stairtreads in the same light grey shade. This resulted in
a visually uniform surface effect, which emphasises the
minimalist design concept. There are also individual steps
for balancing different levels in the classroom block
annexes. “Like all norament® stairtreads, the norament®
satura solution is extremely tough and non-slip,” commented
Martina Hoock, nora market segment specialist
for education. norament® stairtreads are designed for
straight steps with a right-angled edge and can be
installed on almost any surface, such as wood, stone,
concrete, metal and many more.
Carbon-neutral floors – certified contribution to climate protection
An additional advantage for the architects was that
nora® floors have been carbon neutral over the entire
product life cycle since January 2019 as part of the
Interface carbon-neutral floor initiative. The company
does this in three steps: avoidance, reduction and compensation
of remaining CO₂ emissions by obtaining
emission reduction certificates. If customers opt for
nora® rubber flooring, they will receive a certificate
upon request, which certifies that the floor coverings
supplied for the building are carbon neutral over the
entire life cycle. This programme therefore helps them to
achieve their own climate goals and they can provide
evidence of this, as required. Liebel Architekten as well
as the city of Aalen as the building owner also received
such a certificate for the floor coverings in the new
classroom block. “Due to the low maintenance costs,
rubber floors are a good solution for sustainable buildings
– the carbon neutral nature of the floor coverings
is the icing on the cake,” said architect Kainzbauer