Swisspor Châtel II
Short description
In 2010, insulation manufacturer Swisspor opened the largest production facility for insulation materials in Switzerland in Châtel-Saint-Denis. Today, the Swiss market leader for expanded polystyrene has built a second factory on a 23,500 square metre site in the capital of the Vivisbach district. This new building is dedicated to the production of PUR/PIR.
The project
The factory adopts a trapezoidal shape to follow the configuration of the site on the one hand and for logistical reasons on the other. As the construction takes place on a sloping site, the east side of the building - which is intended for storage and organisation (level 1-0) - is eight metres higher than the west side, which is intended for production (level 0-0). This is an opportunity from a logistical point of view, as lorries can access the floor slab of the warehouse on level 1-0 directly via four loading ramps. Level 0-0 is connected to level 1-0 by a suitable goods lift and various staircases, which also serve as escape routes. The changing rooms, showers, sanitary facilities and the technical rooms below the loading level are located on the ground floor, i.e. on 0-0. A mezzanine floor houses the cafeteria and the offices, which are directly connected to the production on site. While 1-0 houses the warehouse and the offices connected to logistics.
Services in detail
The production level is made entirely of reinforced concrete, with a prefabricated structure and columns made of reinforced concrete and a ceiling made of prestressed concrete. An important element, as the spans in the hall are very large. In order to achieve a high degree of flexibility in production, the client wanted the columns to have a mesh width of sixteen by sixteen metres. This means that the eight metre long panels coming out of the machines can circulate twice on this level. As the slab absorbs the flow of articulated lorries, it is also designed to hold one tonne per square metre, which is why this technical decision was so important. The storage level is made entirely of steel structures, which is an interesting difference to the two plan sections of the factory.
Building volume: 227,500 m3