Fagus Factory, Alfeld Germany

[duburban]

I'm looking into this building for an Arch. school class. All my sources describe the vertical load paths as "battered piers" but haven't found anything telling me for certain if they are steel or masonry. Does anyone know this building?

I was thinking to myself, how can i get in touch with Germany? Is this forum open to Germans?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fagus_Factory

 

[MarkusS]

I've a large picture of this building hanging in my office, visited this building two years ago and like it very much.

I don't know if I got your question right.

The "yellow pillars" between the windows are masonry, the core is "Backstein" (brick), the visible yellow stuff is something we call "Klinker" (clinker brick), a layer of "good looking" bricks around the solid brick core, my dictionary tells me that the correct term is "facework". If I remember correctly, the yellow clinker brick ist "Greppin clincer", a clinker that is burnt a very high temperatures, making it very hard.

There are some more pictures http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/Fagus_Works.html and there are some references to Fagus http://books.google.de/books/about/Architecture.html?id=fyUBgspcsgAC&redir_esc=y

 

[duburban]

Hey Markuss,

Thanks for your information! I have the books and all the photos but theres a lot of language thats left to be interpreted. The building is often described as one of the first steel structured buildings which doesn't agree with the masonry battered pier idea. Theres surprisingly few good shots of the interior of the main building. Im now going to have to go to germany just to document the interior!

 

[MarkusS]

This might help ...

http://www.awmagazin.de/artikel/das-fagus-werk-feiert-100-jaehriges-jubilaeum

There is a short technical description, perhaps google translate can help http://baugeschichte.a.tu-berlin.de/owl/Moderne/Alfeld_Faguswerk/Alfeld_Faguswerk.html

Some more interior pics http://www.ndr.de/ratgeber/reise/urlaubsregionen/hannover/faguswerk108.html

 

[MarkusS]

For shure, this is the first large building Gropius planned.

Although there are many structural challenges in the Fagus building - and many steel beams in the building - the walls are masonry.

Steel structured buildings - as I understand this - are much older (London, Chrystal Palace 1851, Chicago, Reliance Building 1895, Giengen (Germany) Steiff Factory 1903, Beverly/Ma United Shoe Machinery 1907, New York City Woolworth Building 1910)?