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GDF Suez
The striking and somewhat stark appearance of the 800MW GDF Suez coal-burning power plant at Wilhelmshaven, in northern Germany, reflects the fact that this is one of the most modern and efficient power plants of its kind in the world.
Architect DHV Architects Location Wilhelmshaven - Germany Company involved Tata Steel Website http://www.colorcoat-online.com
It was designed by Netherlands-based DHV Architects - Building on Industry which, at the same time designed a similar coal-fired power plant in Rotterdam, for the same client.
Construction of the building envelope, including the structural steelwork and cladding, was undertaken by Darmstadt-based Donges SteelTec, a subsidiary of Hitachi Power Europe.
While much of the building’s form was dictated by its function, explains architect Roel Brouwers, “we also worked hard to make it acceptable to the the surrounding natural landscape and coastline.” The imposing structure is located in an area of Germany popular with holiday makers and dog walkers. His practice was determined, Brouwers adds, that the building “shouldn’t look like a purely industrial facility”.
After a lot of research, he opted to achieve this with the use of 0.75mm-thick trapezoidal steel profiles from Netherlands-based SAB-profiel, part of Tata Steel, rather than aluminium cladding.
The trapezoidal profile elements comprising the outer shell of the steel-framed power station, are a standard length of 6m and 0.90m wide. They feature an outer 200-micron coating of Colorcoat HPS200 Ultra®. The high-performance Colorcoat HPS200 Ultra® is an extremely durable and corrosion-resistant material well suited to Wilhelmshaven’s harsh weather and salt-laden air.
“We chose different shades of white and 15 different grey tones, in response to the frequently changing sky and weather conditions,” Brouwers explains. Five of these are from the Colorcoat HPS200Ultra® standard colour palette while the other 10 shades are special spot colours devised by Tata Steel.
The high degree of prefabrication employed on the building of the power station allowed for rapid construction. Installation of the building envelopes on a total of 18 individual buildings with varying roof and wall constructions and building heights ranging from 7 to 107m, with a total facade area of approximately 51,000 m2 took less than two years, from summer 2010 to the spring of 2013
Trapezoidal sheets SAB Profil 45/150
Colorcoat HPS200 Ultra® in 15 grey tones
