Bürgerbad Handorf in Münster

Location Münster, Germany

Client/Operator Betreiberverein Büba Handorf gGmbH

Architects POS4 Architekten und Generalplaner GmbH DE – 40237 Düsseldorf www.pos4.de

Design team Inga Knoop, Nurdin Aliti

General contractor Pellikaan Bauunternehmen Deutschland GmbH DE – 40880 Ratingen www.pellikaan.com

Author Pellikaan / Pos4

Photos Damian Sutmann

Official opening April 2021

CITIZENS’ ASSOCIATION DESIGNS AND BUILDS NEW INDOOR SWIMMING POOL

BÜRGERBAD HANDORF IN MÜNSTER

After only 12 months for construction, the new indoor swimming pool has been handed over to the operating association Büba Handorf gGmbH. As a replacement for the outdated district swimming pool, it will now be a central venue for year-round sports and leisure activities in Handorf. The pool was planned with the operating association and built, among other things, with tile donations and contributions from Handorf families and business people. In response to the tight economic constraints, the swimming pool facility combines distinctive aesthetics with a focus on function and efficiency.

Integrated strategy for the district The Handorf citizens’ association started work on planning its new indoor swimming pool in 2019, as the old swimming pool had become increasingly uneconomic to run. Due to its high operating costs and the need for modernisation, those in charge of the operating association decided to design and build from scratch. The ideal location was quickly found on Hobbeltstrasse next to Handorf’s fire service in a park setting by the Lammerbach stream. The creation of an indoor pool in this way, with minimised space requirements concentrating on the essentials and focusing on the pool’s main use by schools and clubs, opened up synergies for the implementation of a building project with minimised resources and cost-effective operation. The package comprising an indoor swimming pool, gymnastics room and the administrative rooms of the operating association has yielded a valuable recreational facility that can be used all year round. The focus at the design stage was on building an attractive pool with high recreational value that encourages people to swim while also being highly efficient. Swimming pool operation was consistently focused on providing an opportunity for health-promoting swimming. Structurally elaborate and maintenance-intensive supplementary features such as water slides and saunas, only used by few patrons in any case, were omitted from the specifications right from the start.

Requirement of economic form, function and recreational quality Pellikaan Bau in Ratingen was awarded the contract for the design and construction of the new citizens’ swimming pool in December 2019.

The citizens’ swimming pool designed by architects POS4 forms the new focal point of the sports and leisure facilities located in the park setting in Münster’s Handorf district.

A slate-grey building envelops the clearly structured functions. Light-coloured plaster façades, attractively decorated with the silhouettes of the gabled houses of Münster’s Prinzipalmarkt, form the front of the building that welcomes users.

The indoor pool’s spacious glazed frontages allow inward and outward views and create a unity with the surroundings. Simple, distinct forms follow function, without any frills. The focus is on function, combined with varied room arrangements and plenty of atmosphere.

Visitors to the indoor pool have central access from the car park. From the glazed foyer, visitors enjoy a view not only of the surroundings, but also of activity in the swimming pool. All entrances provide seamless access.

The pool has a 25 m four-lane competition pool and acclimatisation steps. Plug connections are available for a mobile pool lift. All areas are fully accessible and adequately dimensioned.

The silhouetted gables on the exterior are echoed in the interior. Openings in the gables here become real doors and windows to the sanitary rooms.

Digital design and communicative project partners The architects POS4 from Düsseldorf resorted to digital design for Handorf’s citizens’ swimming pool from the very beginning. Building Information Modelling (BIM) was used to achieve greater efficiency, quality and cost-security in the pool’s design and construction. Design with BIM requires all project participants, such as the architect, the operating association as the building owner, general contractor and technicians, to work on a virtual building model. Preliminary planning is highly detailed and makes it possible to precisely determine the interdependencies of the various trades. For example, the automated detection of scheduling clashes is of decisive importance, especially as far as the elaborate swimming pool equipment is concerned. Here, technical interaction is checked and optimised in advance on the model. The motto is: “First build digitally, then for real.” In this way, expensive rescheduling is minimised during the later construction of the facility.

An important prerequisite for the successful use of BIM is its acceptance by those involved in the project. The operating association and general contractor Pellikaan both proved to be highly communicative project partners who contributed both the will and the technical understanding to derive the greatest possible benefit from digital planning. In close consultation with the client, 3D visualisation was used during the planning phase to clarify the key details relating to pool use in advance. The general contractor with his experience of BIM provided the required downstream interface and accessed the data interactively and loss-free during construction.

Complete control of time and costs Actual construction of the swimming pool went smoothly thanks to the in-depth planning. Time and costs remained fully on schedule, one reason for this being that the project was planned as a “lean pool” with a strong focus on secure costing and transparency. Individual elements were developed as supplementary modules with a clearly defined price structure so the client was able to compare them.

Representing the owner, the managing director of the operating association is highly satisfied with the outcome. He sees the new building as a fine example for other municipalities to follow: “We have not only built a beautiful and functional indoor swimming pool, but have also interlinked the region’s sports facilities and created high recreational value for locals and visitors.”