A new control tower is currently being built at Nuremberg´s airport. In 1991 an invitation to tender was issued for this project, and our design won first prize. In 1993 the room programme was reduced, and our design had to be modified accordingly.
The client wanted a significant building able to assert itself in its environment - though enclosed between large airport halls. In addition, it should be a symbol of the rapidly expanding airport.
Our new design responds to these requirements:
The tower itself clearly rises above the surrounding halls, inclining on its eastern side towards the airfield, beyond the frontage of the halls. The formal pattern itself is also much more prominent than the large-scale, simple volumes of the halls.
Practical functions, and relevant requirements, did, of course, play a dominant role, limiting the scope of the design formally. The height of the tower, the shape and the dimensions of the control board, the technical installations and the access routes were given facts, which could not be modified. In addition, the mass of the new building is situated in the lower floors between and behind the dominating masses of the halls. Taking this into account, there were few opportunities for a form which would break out beyond the existing parameters.
However, within this clearly-defined framework we developed a building of significance, thanks to its sculptural shape and material effect, both in its exterior and interior.