RhyTech | Switzerland
Vandaag, 00:00
Project: RhyTech, Neuhausen am Rheinfall // Switzerland
Architect: Studio Märkli Architekten AG & Dachtler Partner AG, Zürich // Switzerland
Fabricator + Installer: Ammann & Thürlemann AG, Zuzwil // Switzerland
Façade system: Special construction
Year of construction: 2023
Product: ALUCOBOND® A2 rocca Dolomite
Photos + Drawings: Allega GmbH + Ammann & Thürlemann AG Fassadentechnik
Deep insight
Every so often, it can be quite crowded in Neuhausen am Rheinfall: while tourists on the banks of the Rhine stretch up to take photographs with their mobile phones, the houses stretching out along on the hill behind jostle for position. Everyone wants to have the best view of the deep river valley, where a massive torrent of water cascades downwards. The architects at Zurich-based Studio Peter Märkli have guaranteed a particularly good viewpoint by constructing two residential towers which stand on the hilltop plateau about ninety metres above the waterfalls. They rise high above the terrain - a bold contemporary look in this apparently charming railway landscape. But on closer inspection, it becomes clear that the modern age has long since been part of the idyllic River Rhine surroundings, with industrial halls and concrete tower blocks dating from the post-war years. The prominent view of the Rhine Falls was a decisive factor for the Studio Märkli design: the two reinforced concrete tower blocks, set on a generous-sized base and panorama terrace, soar sixty and eighty metres above the treetops and church spires. The Halter AG, responsible for the development and execution, built two hundred apartments varying in size, layout and orientation. The most of the apartments have glazed loggias and offers views over the River Rhine and the surrounding landscape. The stronger a tower’s distinct contours are, the more care is required when designing its façades. Their surface structure, the granular details and complexity combine to give the exterior depth and variety, and also to create a cohesive image and a long-distance impact.
The façades on these two high-rise buildings reiterate the horizontal lines which can be seen from the slopes: railway lines including viaducts and the riverbank, roads and plateaus. One storey is stacked on another, layer by layer, line by line. Two horizontal bands surround each floor - a band of panorama windows framed in light tones; a band of anthracite-coloured ALUCOBOND® shingles below that. The shingle band, with insulation behind it for a better energy balance, is a reference to local history. This area, which has now been converted into a residential and business district, was once an Alusuisse plant and the site of Europe's first aluminium smelter. Later, it became the location for the aluminium group’s European development activities, and this is where the very first aluminium composite panel – ALUCOBOND® – saw the light of day in 1969. So, the rocca Dolomite ALUCOBOND® shingles do not only refer to this aspect of local history, they also recall the traditional method of cladding with slate shingles. However, these shingles are more lightweight, more robust, and offer better weather-resistance than natural slate. Dark mineral tones alternate with bands of pale glass on the façade creating a striking striped lighthouse pattern, as if a landmark was needed at the Rhine Falls. Presuming you can take your eyes off the spray, the best vantage point to view the towers is from the water's edge.