Platform on new construction, renovation, restoration and transformation
With its expressive form, imposing volume and startling height, the Groninger Forum gives the city center of Groningen a new impulse. The Groninger Forum is a meeting place for all curious people and houses a variety of functions. Construction is almost complete: the doors will open at the end of November 2019.
The most striking feature is the spectacular facade of the Groninger Forum: a dynamic interplay of geometric facade planes that connect to each other at different angles, in combination with playfully placed windows that provide an optimal light experience. Behind this façade executed in natural stone, an attractive meeting place with various cultural facilities will soon emerge, connected to a large atrium by ten squares.
Playfully placed windows provide an optimal light experience.
The Groninger Forum concerns a commission from the Municipality of Groningen. Implementation is in the hands of BAM Bouw en Techniek, in collaboration with BAM Civiel. "We are building the Groninger Forum on a five-story parking garage with about 380 parking spaces," says Project Director Jos Rona of BAM Bouw en Techniek. "Against that is a bicycle shed for about 1,200 bicycles. The Groninger Forum itself consists of ten floors, with three event and exhibition spaces, five cinema halls, various catering establishments, Storyworld with comics and games, the library and the tourist office. The roof terrace at a height of 45 meters offers a beautiful view of the city."
The Groninger Forum is revitalizing Groningen's city center.
Construction work started energetically in 2012, but had to be temporarily halted. Rona: "In September 2014, the first earthquakes were felt in the city of Groningen, resulting in the necessary damage. Reason enough for the municipality to make the Groninger Forum earthquake-proof." BAM Advies & Engineering, engineering firm ABT and experts from New Zealand investigated the options for this. They concluded that reinforcement was the best solution. Rona: "With higher strength concrete, more reinforcing steel, reinforcements in the steel structure and more connections between the steel and concrete, the building is strong enough to remain intact after a severe quake. This allows the public to escape safely. At the same time, the characteristic appearance and program are preserved."
The Film Square on the fifth floor.
After an intensive period of design and construction, with building components and assembly steps worked out in BIM, construction restarted in late 2015. The two concrete cores already built were demolished and eighty percent of the first floor went out. BAM Bouw en Techniek built two new, heavily reinforced concrete cores, one on the east side and one on the west side. Starting on the ninth floor, a steel structure connected the cores. The rest of the building is constructed of a complex steel structure. In particular, the rotating mass and staggered voids presented a challenge. Rona: "Based on BAM Bouw en Techniek's integral thinking, we integrated the structural and installation engineering work. That worked extremely well."
The Groninger Forum, a new city icon under the smoke of the Martini Tower.
Rona emphasizes that the new start of construction was also a new start of cooperation with the Groningen municipality. "With a new team on our side, of which I am also part, we took on quite a challenge with the municipality. That requires a transparent, trust-based way of working together. The municipality showed courage by opening up to this. And that has worked out particularly well. It has also resulted in the fact that, after the shell delivery at the end of 2018, we are still involved. To prevent the finishing touches from not matching what we delivered, we offered to install the permanent interior under our supervision. We see this additional assignment as a fine crowning achievement of our cooperation. We therefore look back on the process and the approaching final result with great pride."
