The most energy-efficient water park in Poland, and maybe even in Europe with its eye-catching facade cladding. Like a chameleon the facade changes colour under the influence of the sun. This is the building of the Water Park in Tychy. An innovative project by the Schick Architekci by TKHolding studio.
Inspiration - the waves of the Paprocański Lake
The main objective of the designers of the facility - Paweł Kobierzewski and Andrzej Truszczyński - was to create an individual project that would fit perfectly into the surroundings as well as the needs of the residents of Tychy. In comparison to the rest of Silesia, Tychy is a relatively young city that develops very dynamically on many levels. The Schick Architekci by TKHolding studio decided that the leitmotif of the project should be liquid forms and breaking waves.
"We wanted to give this place such values as energy, sport, nature, recreation and modernity. The nearest inspiration turned out to be the nearest neighborhood - we decided to refer to the nature and dynamic, wavy shapes of the sheet of the Paprocański Lake, which people are very proud of" - explains architect Andrzej Truszczyński.
Rockpanel facade cladding - ever changing like a chameleon
One of the most characteristic and eye-catching elements of the building are the original stone wool cladding panels from Rockpanel, which almost completely cover the elliptical building and like a chameleon change color in contact with the sun. The shimmering boards perfectly reflect the properties of the water surface, which- depending on the season, the intensity of the sun and the viewing angle- also changes its shades. Finding a material that would be able to visualize this idea was not easy. This spectacular effect was achieved thanks to Rockpanel Chameleon panels, which change color under the influence of lighting. In the Water Park in Tychy, a variant of violet has been used, which transforms into green and blue. "Thanks to the Rockpanel panels, we managed to achieve this unique character. Depending on the angle of view and light, a real spectacular design appears to our eyes", says architect Paweł Kobierzewski.
Energy efficiency at 100%
For each water park, the most expensive is energy consumption: heat and electricity. Therefore, it was crucial that the building achieved the highest energy standards. The designers of the Water Park together with the investor (Regional Center of Water and Sewage Management) went a step further - the building is 100% energetically self-sufficient, and additionally, thanks to the surpluses produced, it can transfer energy to the municipal network.
This is all thanks to the construction of an absolutely unique gas pipeline on a national scale. It all started with a Tychy treatment plant - taking into account the amount of biogas produced in it, it was decided to use it to supply the park with electricity and heat. And this is how the biogas is injected with a six-kilometer pipeline to the Water Park, where electricity is generated in the co-generator room. Thanks to this, the object is practically 100% stocked with energy. Its surpluses, especially in the summer, are transmitted to the municipal network, so you can supply about 1/7 of the city's energy.
Insulation
In the Water Park building, insulation of ROCKWOOL plays an equally important role in increasing energy efficiency. An object such as the Water Park is characterized by a large temperature difference inside the building, because it consists of "warm" and "cold" spheres, which is why it was important not only the insulation of external partitions, but also internal ones, between different zones. All partitions have been insulated to prevent the formation of thermal bridges and energy escaping - even slides have been insulated! "The ROCKWOOL stone wool products met a number of very strict criteria. They have excellent heat conduction coefficients, they are vapor-permeable, meaning they do not absorb water, thanks to which they prevent moisture, mold or fungi. Most importantly for public buildings, they also provide full fire safety - these products are non-combustible with the highest reaction to fire A1", says Paweł Kobierzewski.
