When the Kampnagel company took over temporarily the abandoned industrial naves in the 80’s, they adapted progressively the envelope to host theatre plays. Interventions resulted in glazings that were dark painted, some covered with insulation, others covered with plants. This freedom allowed independent theatre to flourish. However, today the building uses too much energy and needs upgrading. The company planned to insulate the envelope from the interior, which posed a problem to the heritage authorities as the walls are listed.

Our task was to reduce the energy consumption whilst keeping the spirit of the building. The team proposed to clear out completely the glazings to bring back the generous daylight of typical industrial buildings. Whilst the plays happen only during ~2-4 hours a week; during rehearsals, montage, and events, the venues can enjoy full daylight. For the plays, thick darkening curtains are provided.

A very precise survey was carried out: envelope components, hourly energy and heating consumption dats during a full year, daily schedules of the venues, with temperature and CO2 surveys from summer and winter, and user interviews. Our computer thermal models were calibrated to reach 87% similarity with reality in temperature, and a 99.7% accuracy in predicting heating consumption. The most valuable outcome was understanding that we could reduce by 80% energy consumption just by regulating properly the heating setpoints.
The rest of the envelope would remain untouched, maintaining the free spirit of the house.

“Everything will change, and nothing will change.

For many years, Kampnagel has been - in terms of construction and technology - unable to keep up with the high artistic level and international appeal of its productions. Since its provisional use as a substitute venue for the Schauspielhaus at the beginning of the 1980s and the conquest of the site by freelance artists, the house has grown organically without ever being equipped as a long-term venue.The technical equipment is outdated because it has not been sufficiently adapted in the last 35 years due to a lack of funds.

-Preserving the character of the location: Atmospheres are preserved - the industrial halls from the site's beginnings as well as its use as a Kampnagel theatre, which has been housed in the building for 40 years. The procedure should be limited to repairs. It does not envisage a conventional refurbishment measure that would completely renovate the building. The traces on the building - as an indication of the history of the place - must be preserved. This means that every well-preserved component of the building and the entire complex will be left in its current state.
-Modernisation and expansion of theatre operations: additional spaces for new functions, research and education as well as the creation of new uses for existing spaces - Improved comfort and well-being inside the building.
-Ecological approach: Preservation of the existing building in its entirety, conversion, optimisation, additions to the existing building, limitation of new materials used
-Bioclimatic processes and pursuit of low-tech strategies: natural ventilation, climatic adaptability of the building, contributions via the behaviour and active participation of users, summer comfort and reduced energy consumption thanks to passive systems.”

Lacaton & Vassal

Hamburg has a Marine west coast climate (Cfb in the Koppen Geiger classification), with an annual average temperature of 9.8ºC. Winters are very cold with an average maximum temperature of 4.9°C in December. Solar radiation is low and mainly diffuse. Temperature drops below -5ºC at night for some 20 days a year. Summers are mild and solar radiation is not very intense (546 W/m2). The average maximum temperature of July is 23.4ºC, though it can climb above 30ºC for a few days. The maximum altitude of the sun in summer is 60º and in winter 13º. Humidity levels remain relatively high throughout the year with averages ranging from 68% to 87%. Wind speed is considerable and constant with an annual average of 3.1 m/s and coming mainly from the west.