New police headquarters in Gummersbach
For some time now, those responsible in the Oberberg district town of Gummersbach in the administrative district of Cologne had been dissatisfied with the situation of the local police stations. The police station on Karlstraße, which dates back to 1972, was far too small and showing its age. The same applied to the station on Hindenburgstraße. In addition, the division of the directorates into two locations was considered extremely unfortunate – with many disadvantages for day-to-day police work. For this reason, planning for the construction of a new police station began at the end of 2015. This was built on the former Steinmüller site between March 2017 and October 2018. Not only the interior design – the outdoor facilities are also impressive.
Over the last two years, an impressive, functional and light-flooded new building has been constructed on the new site. The location was chosen deliberately, as its central position makes it possible to reach locations throughout the district quickly. On a floor space of 4,500 square meters and a room area of 8,000 square meters, spread over 5 floors, a domicile has been created that is equipped with the latest technology, significantly improves communication and creates working conditions that ensure even more efficiency for the daily work of the police. The 160 changing room lockers and 325 meters of file and storage shelving also contribute to this. The highlight of the building is the so-called concrete core activation for temperature control. This uses the ability of the ceilings and walls in the building to store thermal energy and thus heat or cool rooms. Prefabricated pipe systems are installed in the concrete components, in which water circulates and, depending on the temperature, absorbs heat from the ceiling, creating a cooling effect, or releases it to the ceiling.
High demands on the load-bearing capacity of external surfaces
“The new building, which now houses 280 employees, is not only top-notch on the inside, but also has very attractive and functionally designed outdoor facilities,” explains Dipl.-Ing. architect Volker Müller, Managing Director of KPBAG Immobilien GmbH & Co KG as the client. “We placed very high demands on all of the outdoor areas around the new building in terms of load-bearing capacity, as the areas will be used not only by employee vehicles but also by heavier emergency vehicles and trucks. We therefore laid a large part of the parking spaces (around 1,500 m²) behind the building with UNI-Coloc heavy-duty paving. This tried-and-tested system was a very good fit from an economic and technical point of view. For the main access road and the areas in front of the entrances, however, we wanted a more representative surface that could also withstand the traffic loads,” explains Müller.
Modula Plus from BERDING BETON is attractive and stable
The Modula Plus block system (with micro chamfer) from BERDING BETON was chosen for these approximately 800 m² areas. This paving from the Einstein paving family features D-point joint technology, which ensures that there is only minimal contact at the bottom edges of the stones when they are laid. Unlike many other interlocking pavers with spacer or interlocking cam systems, the proportion of the surface where the stones touch is therefore very small. This prevents crunching, the joint required to absorb traffic loads is always maintained, thus ensuring optimum force transmission between the stones.
Structuring the surfaces with different formats
Volker Müller explains: “Because we have already had good experience with the Einstein paving system in other places, this system was also the first choice for the new police station. Thanks to the optimal joint design, the surface remains very stable even under load. But we were also able to set very attractive visual accents here with this system: Although this is a polygonal surface, the 40 x 30, 30 x 30 and 30 x 10 cm formats in 10 cm thickness allowed us to create very attractive laying patterns. This also allowed us to structure the different areas of the surfaces. The surface of the material used also makes an important visual contribution: the nuanced slate/beige color has a very natural effect and harmonizes with the modern façade of the new police station,” says Müller.
For the first time in the history of the North Rhine-Westphalian police force, the office building, which cost around 20 million euros to construct, is being rented by the state from a private consortium and not built from the ground up. The new police station was opened by Interior Minister Herbert Reul on October 31, 2018. Volker Müller concludes: “All police directorates are now united under one roof at the new location. This creates short distances, increases cooperation and the effectiveness of our police – and makes it easier for citizens, as they now have a central point of contact for all matters.”
