Master Architecture | Summer semester

MA 3.2 - Load-bearing construction

Building in existing structures is a specialization in the Master's degree course in Architecture at the University of Siegen. Supporting structures of existing buildings are analyzed qualitatively and possibilities for upgrading supporting structures for planned conversions are shown and discussed. Independent exercises based on practical examples expand and deepen the acquired knowledge.

Contents

• Building in existing buildings
• Load-bearing structures
• materials
• Damage
• Refurbishments
  
  
  

The design is one of the most important elements in the study of architecture and, as an overall architectural concept, should result iteratively from the development of the corresponding sub-concepts for design, function and construction. The fulfillment of this challenging task is made possible by a holistic approach in the design and planning process.

In the 2026 summer semester, the focus is on the design of a two-court sports hall for the Leonardo da Vinci School in Wolfsburg. The school complex from the 1960s, consisting of a comprehensive school, an elementary school and a daycare center, has already been renovated, expanded and converted several times. A second sports hall, which was demolished due to structural defects, is to be rebuilt elsewhere. Schools and educational facilities are of particular importance in Wolfsburg. The Autostadt is still competing with Stuttgart and Munich for skilled workers and engineers, for whose families the educational landscape is a particularly important criterion. The city was created on the drawing board under National Socialism together with the VW plant, then known as the KdF plant. The city experienced rapid growth in the first decades after the end of the Second World War. Since then, Wolfsburg has attached great importance to renowned architecture, for example by Alvar Aalto, Hans Scharoun, Friedrich Wilhelm Krämer and Zaha Hadid.

Membranes are materials subject to tensile stress that consist of thin textiles or films and enable short construction times and quick installation. They are used, for example, for large-scale roofing, tents or façades. Due to its flexibility, the membrane adapts to different boundary conditions and deforms depending on the load.

In the module BA 30 - Advanced Membrane | MA 10 - Elective Module Membrane, these materials are first explained in a theoretical part, the structural boundary conditions are analyzed and the possible applications are examined using built examples.

In the practical part, the task is to design different membrane constructions and implement them in a model. This is followed by documentation. The aim of the elective module is to understand the membrane as a structural element and to gain further design options through practical implementation.

Contents

• Rope and rope nets
• Material and construction principles
• Membrane model making
  

The elective module deals with the movable structures of the Spanish architect Emilio Pérez Piñero. Concepts such as change and mobility are analyzed in an architectural context. Mobility in the sense of a flexible, dynamic and nomadic space is a very important aspect of the zeitgeist of the 1960s. The architectural typology of this period is often characterized by large and sometimes mobile structures in which spaces of the most diverse kinds are created. Emilio Pérez Piñero was one of the first architects to deal with movable supporting structures and thematize them in his designs. His successors include Félix Escrig and Santiago Calatrava.

The aim of the seminar is to design and build a mobile artifact for temporary use based on the modules developed by Emilio Pérez Piñero and Felix Escrig. In the first phase, the skeleton is created, which consists of three to four basic modules. A basic module consists of rods with a length of approx. 2.5 m, which are connected to each other by a central knot. Possible materials are PVC, metal or wood. The skeleton can be used to support light and sound installations in accordance with its intended use. The second phase involves cladding the skeleton. Textile materials of various kinds are suitable for this purpose.

Students work in groups of two or three. Good knowledge of CAD programs, especially in three-dimensional representation, is necessary in order to be able to represent the artifacts.

The elective takes place as a compact seminar.