Situated between major municipalities in the town of Göttingen, Germany, is Despang Architekten’s model for progressive post-fossil construction within the higher educational setting. The Kita Kindergarten serves as a case study for the proactive approach to self-sufficiency and sustainability through careful attention to both energy efficiency standards – Passive House – and long term planning towards net zero.

1. PRE-CAST
CONCRETE
BUILDING
By: Hussein Azher
Supervisor: Dr.Khalid
Al-Nahrain Univ.
College of Eng. D.A.E.
Third year 2019-2020

2. KITA GÖTTINGEN BUILDING
Architects: Despang Architekten
Location: Göttingen, Germany
Architects In Charge: Günther
Despang/Martin Despang
Project Architects: Philip
Hogrebe/Jörg Steveker
Area: 512 sqm
Year: 2010
Photographs: Jochen Stüber, Olaf
Baumann

4. Situated between major
municipalities in the town of
Göttingen, Germany, is Despang
Architekten’s model for progressive
post-fossil construction within the
higher educational setting.
The Kita Kindergarten serves as a
case study for the proactive
approach to self-sufficiency and
sustainability through careful
attention to both energy efficiency
standards – Passive House – and long
term planning towards net zero.

5. EARLY SKETCHES

6. With offices in Dresden, Munich, Hannover
and academic satellite platform in Honolulu,
Hawaii (University of Hawaii Manoa), the
team at Despang Architekten developed
multiple strategies to address the various
elements that enveloped the site, ranging
from thermal performance to daylighting and
optimal building orientation.
Starting with the physical location and
building performance functioning as a primary
criteria, it was determined that full southern
exposure was critical in achieving the
necessary passive exposure to the sun in the
winter.
The north would need to be optimized with
thermal insulation by way of tactically
berming the landscape from grade as an
integral roof element of the new building.
Existing structures on both the east and west
frame the access points into the building that
are slowly revealed as the bermed roof rises
to its full height.

7. THE
ENTRANCE

8. In terms of space planning, the programming was tightly
integrated early on into the design decision to utilize a
sloping roof.
The rear northern portions of the building with low
height ceilings house the mechanical and restrooms.
Primary circulation comprises the midway section of the
fan shaped floor plan that is designed with built-in
furniture and interior glazing between the main activity
spaces.
Effective daylighting by means of skylights in the ceilings
of the hallways ensures more than adequate diffuse light
during the day.
Located within the southernmost section of the building
are multifunctional rooms, sleeping rooms, and staff and
kitchen areas bordering the eastern elevation.

9. THE
GROUND
FLOOR
PLAN

10. SECTION
DETAILS

11. MATERIAL
CHOICES

12. When it comes to designing for highly active uses such
as kindergartens, longevity of construction and
materiality play a major factor.
When it came to deciding on the material
palette, Despang Architekten employed a limited
number of materials – precast concrete, spruce wood,
and linoleum all untreated and left raw.
Utilizing factory produced precast elements in the form
of insulated sandwich panels for the exterior walls and
thinner slabs for interior bearing elements ensured
rapid assembly and better quality control.
A limited amount of joints also aided in the rapid
assembly – with only a few minor interior demising
walls requiring infill construction components.
As the concrete walls radiate from the centroid of the
conical floor plan, their non-parallel orientation in
combination with ceiling mounted wood diffusers lends
itself to enhanced acoustical properties typically not
associated with predominantly concrete construction.
In action, the honesty of materiality provides a clean
canvas for which the kids can pin up drawings and
artwork which juxtaposes the subdued colors of the
concrete and linoleum flooring.

13. MATERIAL
CHOICES

14. MATERIAL
CHOICES

15. CONSTRUCTION
SITE

16. CONSTRUCTION
SITE

17. In order to relieve the building of its dependence on fossil fuels, the
energy saving tactics employed are extensive and robust, starting
with the orientation of the building to the south with a fully glazed
façade to take advantage of solar gain during winter. The precast
exterior walls feature 20cm of rigid insulation resulting in a U-Value of
.12 W/m2K.
Roof construction comprises a concrete structural slab built upon
with 60cm of insulating glass foam gravel, and further enhanced
through the addition of the earthen layer that supports the intensive
green roof.
High performance triple pane glazing is held in place with RAICO
thermally broken mullions.
In addition to providing high levels of insulation, air tightness plays a
significant factor in the overall efficiency of the building envelope
system as a whole.
When tested with the blower door, the Kita Kindergarten came in at
n50 = 0.43h-1, surpassing the Passive House standard of n50-1. Al-Ko
Therm controlled air distribution in conjunction with a HRV achieves
a heat recovery ratio of 80%.

18. Although the spaces of the kindergarten are predominantly heated
through passive solar gain, the system is provided with backup from
the central campus heating and cooling plant.
During the summer months, the air distribution system is operated
during the night, bringing in cool summer air that flushes the interior
and readies it for occupancy at a comfortable temperature the
following morning.
Accentuating the glazed southern façade and providing an additional
element relating to solar optimization are 1 meter deep concrete
frames that are thermally disconnected from the main building.
Serving multiple functions, the lower portions function as seating at
the base, guardrails at the top – for the open landscaped roof, and
integral shading element for high angle summer sun.
During the few days in summer when needed, rolling screen shades
installed at the tops of the exterior concrete frames can be lowered
while still providing views to the exterior from the interior.

19. PRE-CAST
PIECES
DOCUMENTS

20. PRE-CAST
UNITS

21. PRE-CAST
UNITS

22. APPLYING GREEN ROOF
BEFORE AFTER

23. Throughout the years the building continues to outperform
the Passive House standard of 15kwh/m2 annually.
The Kita Kindergarten at the Göttingen University campus
stands as testament that energy efficient buildings need not be
bland or stale, and through a holistic approach and attention to
detail, the aesthetic, performative and humanistic qualities can
cross contribute to a create better, healthier overall space to
inhabit.

24. MORE EXAMPLES ON
PRE-CAST CONCRETE
BUILDINGS

26. https://www.archdaily.com/330625/kita-gottingen-
despang-architekten
https://area-info.net/architectural-concrete-market-
research-report-2018-with-production-consumption-
and-revenue-forecast-2025/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/472807660852982775
/
https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/37935796859458936
8/
https://www.bft-international.com/en/news/precast-
concrete-school-a-result-of-architects-educated-
decision_3386665.html
https://www.kafkagranite.com/benefits-architectural-
precast-concrete
https://www.kafkagranite.com/precast-concrete-
aggregates/architectural-precast
https://precast.org/2014/01/implementing-scc-part-1/
THE SOURCES

27. THANK YOU.