Competitions are a good way to show your project outside the walls of the university, have it evaluated, and test yourself in teamwork. This is what the architecture students of Wrocław University of Technology did: Wojciech Bandyk, Krystian Cięciwa, Roksana Gleizner, Agnieszka Laska, Weronika Piotrowska, Kinga Szymczyk and Bartek Tenenberg. The team, working at UrbanGEOS under the direction of Maciej Szczepanski, entered a rather controversial competition for the concept of an office building for the Człuchów Forest District. See their proposal here.
Competition design of an office building for the Człuchów Forestry Commission.
© Wojciech Bandyk, Krystian Cięciwa, Roksana Gleizner, Agnieszka Laska,
Weronika Piotrowska, Kinga Szymczyk, Bartek Tenenberg, Maciej Szczepański
The goal of the contest, decided in late April, organized by the State Treasury, the State Forests National Forest Holding and the Człuchów Forest District, was to create an office building with, among other things, a conference room, social and storage rooms, as well as landscaping and small architecture. The concept was to take into account the principles of: accessibility, allowing all users to use the space; friendly, spatially and visually attractive shaping of the function and form of the designed objects, determining or emphasizing the relationship with the surroundings; efficient communication; pro-ecological and energy-saving infrastructure solutions.
Człuchów Forest District office building, PZT and axonometry
© Wojciech Bandyk, Krystian Cięciwa, Roksana Gleizner, Agnieszka Laska,
Weronika Piotrowska, Kinga Szymczyk, Bartek Tenenberg, Maciej Szczepański
However, the competition rules proposed by the organizers raised doubts in the Council of the Pomeranian Regional Chamber of Architects of the Republic of Poland, which made numerous comments on their content. The Chamber's reaction resulted in changes to some points of the regulations.
Only one prize was awarded in the competition—the winner was the Wroclaw studio BCM Architects.
main entrance to the building
© Wojciech Bandyk, Krystian Cięciwa, Roksana Gleizner, Agnieszka Laska,
Weronika Piotrowska, Kinga Szymczyk, Bartek Tenenberg, Maciej Szczepański
Student idea for the Forestry Commission building
Taking into account the high degree of forest cover, the students attempted to create a block that fits the plot and does not interfere heavily with the surrounding area—so that it complements it.
An important design aspect is the forest permeating the interior of the building. We wanted the reference to the forest infrastructure to be very visible in the interior, hence we looked for numerous inspirations in the surrounding vegetation. The main idea of the design concept was to use the pinecone motif, which significantly influenced the shape of the body and interiors, the authors explain.
The building was divided into two parts
© Wojciech Bandyk, Krystian Cięciwa, Roksana Gleizner, Agnieszka Laska,
Weronika Piotrowska, Kinga Szymczyk, Bartek Tenenberg, Maciej Szczepanski
The building consists of two main elements, which are a conference room designed for fifty people, and a two-story office part. Both are connected by a representative lobby with a reception desk and a rest area.
Człuchów Forestry Commission office building, first floor plan and south elevation
© Wojciech Bandyk, Krystian Cięciwa, Roksana Gleizner, Agnieszka Laska,
Weronika Piotrowska, Kinga Szymczyk, Bartek Tenenberg, Maciej Szczepański
We designed the interior in a spacious way, starting already with the arrangement of the entrance areas. The idea was to use solutions that were as clear as possible to all viewers, while thinking about creating an elegant space, the students add.
On the ceiling there are coffers, which, in addition to their decorative function, are an important structural element, being a reinforcement of the roof
© Wojciech Bandyk, Krystian Cięciwa, Roksana Gleizner, Agnieszka Laska,
Weronika Piotrowska, Kinga Szymczyk, Bartek Tenenberg, Maciej Szczepański
On the ceiling there are coffers, which, in addition to their decorative function, are an important structural element, being a reinforcement of the roof. In the center of the lobby, they placed a space fenced off with a glass sheet for the comfortable reception of business people. Glazing, skylight and large-format windows provide openness to the forest surroundings and adequate lighting. Vegetation has been introduced into the interior through, among other things, the use of a green wall in the entrance area. Seats in a form resembling stones are a characteristic element.
Representative lobby, green wall and seats in the form of stones
© Wojciech Bandyk, Krystian Cięciwa, Roksana Gleizner, Agnieszka Laska,
Weronika Piotrowska, Kinga Szymczyk, Bartek Tenenberg, Maciej Szczepański
CLT wood, extensive green roofs and monocrystalline photovoltaics
In designing, the students focused on environmentally friendly solutions—using construction materials that provide adequate load-bearing capacity while having a low carbon footprint. They proposed the main structural cores from CLT wood, which exhibits good load-bearing properties. The structural core of the roof is trapezoidal sheet metal, and under the panels
photovoltaic panels, the authors used standard soffits, while extensive green roofs were used on other parts.
The facade of the building was made of wood
© Wojciech Bandyk, Krystian Cięciwa, Roksana Gleizner, Agnieszka Laska,
Weronika Piotrowska, Kinga Szymczyk, Bartek Tenenberg, Maciej Szczepański
The insulating material of the entire building is hard mineral wool, and the eastern facade is covered with the author's „living wall”, for the installation of which the students provided wood from the logging. The building is heated by a heat pump, and ventilated by a recuperative air handling unit.
Człuchów Forest District office building, cross-section A-A and west elevation
© Wojciech Bandyk, Krystian Cięciwa, Roksana Gleizner, Agnieszka Laska,
Weronika Piotrowska, Kinga Szymczyk, Bartek Tenenberg, Maciej Szczepanski
The students also thought about reusing water, using a dual system for gray water filtration, and placed containers on the plot for rainwater, which feeds the green areas. In addition, there is a sewage treatment plant.
A bird's-eye view of the office building—monocrystalline photovoltaic panels on the roof
© Wojciech Bandyk, Krystian Cięciwa, Roksana Gleizner, Agnieszka Laska,
Weronika Piotrowska, Kinga Szymczyk, Bartek Tenenberg, Maciej Szczepanski
To reduce the need for purchased energy as much as possible, we decided to use renewable energy sources. We used monocrystalline photovoltaic panels in the project, installing them on the roof in the rotunda area and the office area. These panels have an efficiency of 16 to 25%, so their efficiency is much higher than polycrystalline panels of the same area, the authors explain.
