[ monovolume ] Hydroelectric Power Station

Architects: monovolume architecture + design
Location: Dörfl, Austria
Project team: Juri Pobitzer & Patrik Pedó
Collaborators: Rita Rabensteiner, Simon Constantini, Cecile Dobler, Benjamin Gaensbacher
Client: Hydroelectric power station consortium limited company
Project year: 2008-2009
Photographer: Simon Constantini & Marion Gelmini

The hydroelectric power station is located near Winnebach brook in Dörfl (municipal territory of Vintl), at 800 m. above sea level. It’s partly built into the slope, since the building area was extremely reduced. The project consists in a simple but polygonal volume, which is formally adapted to the landscape and the local conditions. The station is conceived as an artificial rock quarried out of the slope. This sensation is underlined by a very reduced use of materials (concrete, glass and steel) in their rougher form, as well as by the “veins” which cross the volume. These “veins” consist of light bands of layered glass and run around the building. At some specific points of those light bands a normal single glass delivers insight to the power station’s bowels.

The main building material is watertight concrete, which was pigmented with white mortar and after treated with hydraulic jet in order to achieve a raw appearance.

The building has two storeys — a ground floor and a basement. The basement shelters the generating set, the distributing unit and the wire room, control tank as well as a storage room. The generating set room extends to the whole building height and is accessible by ground floor. The ground floor itself contains the space for the utility companies and the control room of the power station.


from  archdaily