Ceiling renovations at the "Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi" special education centre completed
In 2016, the city council approved additional funding and the immediate start of a thorough renovation of the ceilings at the Pestalozzi-Förderschule, Ludwig-Kirsch-Straße 29, as they no longer had the required load-bearing capacity.
Between October 2013 and April 2015, a partial refurbishment of the school building had already been carried out with the renovation of the façade, including draining, and the flat roof, with the construction of the escape staircase and escape walkways as a second structural escape route as well as the renewal of the heating installation. Following the completion of this renovation work, an unpleasant odour was detected in some classrooms due to the new sealed windows.
The subsequent indoor air and solids analyses revealed that the parquet flooring in the classrooms had been laid with an adhesive containing tar. Because the permissible guideline value for naphthalene had been exceeded, the parquet flooring in six classrooms was removed and the tar-containing adhesive milled off. A new floor covering was then to be laid.
When the tar adhesive was milled off, it was discovered that the existing reinforced concrete floor slabs in the entire old building were no longer sufficiently load-bearing due to their relatively low strength and rigidity as well as severe corrosion of the reinforcement.
In the period from October 2016 to November 2017, 850 square metres of floor slabs were demolished and newly installed and 167 square metres of floor slabs were structurally upgraded. The pollutants were thus removed. This urgently needed intervention also involved a complete interior refurbishment. Measures such as improved impact sound insulation, the installation of acoustic ceilings, new LED lighting and the complete renovation have significantly improved the learning conditions. The additional refurbishment costs amount to around 1.1 million euros.
As soon as the inspections for the new emergency lighting system and the fire alarm system, the approval for use from the structural engineer, the fire safety inspector and the building permit office have been received, the special school is expected to be fully operational by the end of December 2017.
Thanks to the planning by Inland Architektur from Oberlungwitz and the ability to compromise and the cooperation of the school management, teachers and pupils, it has been possible to carry out the refurbishment without disrupting school operations.