Eichbottbad indoor pool in Leingarten

Location Leingarten, Germany

Client / operator Municipality of Leingarten

Architects Kauffmann Theilig & Partner Freie Architekten PartGmbB DE – 73760 Ostfildern www.ktp-architekten.de

Author Kauffmann Theilig & Partner

Photos Roland Halbe Fotografie, Stuttgart

Official opening March 2021

ROOF OPENINGS FOR GREATER TRANSLUCENCY

EICHBOTTBAD INDOOR POOL IN LEINGARTEN

Flooding the interior with plenty of daylight, the large roof openings are the striking features of the new indoor pool in Leingarten, Baden-Württemberg. By combining the indoor and outdoor pools, Kauffmann Theilig & Partner have achieved synergies with the entrance area and service rooms.

The site and its surroundings are characterised by a green corridor running north-south. The existing outdoor swimming pool and an event centre are embedded in this stretch of parkland. Placed at the north-west corner and aligned north-south, the new slender building integrates itself into the setting. The existing buildings with garages, infrastructure for the German Red Cross and the German Life Saving Association (DLRG) as well as the kiosk remain and are part of the new ensemble.

The surroundings of the outdoor swimming pool remain spacious, unconstrained and without structural changes. The main entrance to the indoor swimming pool is at the east end, forms the edge of the forecourt and its public face, and is only a short distance from the parking spaces in front of it. For building to be permitted in the green corridor along the Eichbott stream, it was necessary to devise flood protection plans and implement structural measures involving culverts.

Synergies and view of the greenery Synergies have been achieved by combining the new pool with the existing outdoor pool. The main entrance and foyer accommodate a cash desk and vending machines respectively. The changing room wing with wet rooms serves both the indoor and outdoor pools. A separate entrance to the changing rooms permits access to the outdoor pool without use of the indoor pool’s foyer.

The foyer with offices and infrastructure leads on to the changing rooms and offers a good view of the pool hall. The 25-m pool with spacious surrounds is oriented to the west towards the corridor of greenery. The children‘s pool is separated from the swimmers‘ pool by a spatial filter and located at the south end of the building, thus creating a good and sunny orientation with proximity to the outdoor children‘s pool. The indoor pool is essentially focused on swimming lessons for schoolchildren and use by senior citizens.

Curved frame of glued laminated trusses Although it is a purely functional pool, the materials create a warm and inviting atmosphere. The interior is defined by bright flooring, white-stained wooden trusses and wood-look wall panelling. The roof structure of the new building consists of curved frames of glued laminated trusses. Large roof openings have a bright and friendly spatial effect. As a result of the segmentation, the large building volume is articulated on the outside. Cross-laminated timber panels extend between the glulam beams. The opaque façade surfaces of the roof and walls are clad with anodised aluminium sheet. The transparent components are steel post-and-beam façades with double or triple glazing. A special feature is the white translucent membrane stretched above the glulam beams, which is acoustically effective and partly conceals the light fixtures. The lighting design ensures glare-free, full-surface illumination of the swimming hall in the evening hours.

The remaining load-bearing structure, the basement and the pools, which have a raised, seamlessly welded stainless steel lining, consist of reinforced concrete. The existing pool water equipment and the ventilation control centre of the indoor pool are located in the basement. The pool hall is ventilated by blowing air onto the surrounding glass façade and extracting the used air and returning it to the basement. Energy is supplied by a CHP unit.