Lighthouse - KALZIP - Dächer & Fassaden aus Aluminium

LIGHTHOUSELIGHTHOUSE

Between heaven

und and sea

Sustainable materials and sophisticated planning open up new dimensions in Denmark’s tallest residential building.  The new residential building is located in close proximity to Aarhus Bay and is visibly inspired by the reflections of the water: from the floor plan of the building – a rhombus with two rounded corners – to the façade and roof, the motif of rising and falling waves is reflected throughout.

From the container port

to the residential area

Not far from the centre of the Danish port city of Aarhus, a new district has been created on the site of a former container terminal. Aarhus Ø offers plenty of modern living space and exciting architecture. With 400 new apartments, The Lighthouse is making a significant contribution to the expansion of living space and lives up to its name: located on the south-eastern shore of the harbour district, Denmark’s tallest residential building rises up like a lighthouse.

With this design, the Copenhagen-based architectural firm 3xn architects (https://3xn.com/) combines an open, modern design with an elegant structure and a sleek profile. The project thus fits in with the progressive architecture typical of Aarhus.

Lightness right to the tip

Another crucial element is the creation of an open space that promotes community and interaction:

a spacious courtyard
Key opportunities Water sports
Shops on the promenade

A special highlight attracts not only residents but also visitors from outside the city to the top floor of the Lighthouse: the Bravn Restaurant offers visitors fine dining and a view of the sea. A roof terrace at a lofty height of 142 metres also offers guests with a head for heights a view of the city and harbour.

When looking at the building, the complex yet light-looking roof shape takes centre stage: a curved ridge running from the highest point to the low end on the opposite side largely determines the shape of the roof and draws the eye skywards.

Planning and implementation

With the help of software and the collected data, the roof design was transferred into a technical drawing. Looking at the part of the building that transitions from the façade of the roof terrace to the roof, it is immediately apparent that the standing seam profiles do not run vertically, but diagonally. What appears to the observer to be a stylistic element has practical reasons: the standing seam profiles are arranged from the ridge to the eaves in such a way that rainwater can run off easily.

Our collaboration with Kalzip ensured that both the architectural vision and the functional requirements at the top of the Lighthouse were met. The versatile design of the system and its ease of installation enabled us to achieve a sleek, durable and sustainable design – while staying on schedule. The attention to detail, responsiveness and quality awareness of the Kalzip team made it possible to integrate their products seamlessly into the overall project.”

Jesper Bork, Partner, Studio Director, Architect MAA bei 3XN

From individual production

until the roof is finished

During processing on the construction site, laying the complex, 3D-curved Kalzip XT sheets with a certain angle of inclination proved to be particularly tricky. Despite the flexible substructure, which offered a little leeway during installation, and the clear construction plans, work was temporarily halted, as Robert Thiebes reports: ‘In this project, there was only a few centimetres of leeway between the profile panels, which determined whether the next panel would fit or get stuck. In order to find the best possible solution to the problem, we travelled to the construction site, quickly identified the error and instructed the employees accordingly.’

The project proves that even smaller construction projects with complex organic shapes can be implemented to the satisfaction of all parties involved with Kalzip systems and the expertise of the aluminium specialists from Koblenz.

Lightweight. Durable. Sustainable.

The Kalzip roof system meets and exceeds all requirements:

High flexibility: individual organic shapes possible
Low weight: made of aluminium, contributes to structural efficiency and easy workability
Durability: particularly robust, low maintenance and corrosion resistanta
Sustainability: Aluminium with a recycling content of 98 per cent, low energy consumption in production, can be returned to the recycling cycle in a single type.