The opening of the STRAWTEC showroom in the 22,500 square meters SkyLabs building, the first dedicated research and laboratory campus in Heidelberg, was a success and many guests experienced STRAWTEC wall systems first hand. STRAWTEC owes its extraordinary high-quality and unique performance properties to the core of highly compressed straw, an abundant, rapidly renewable raw material.
After being greeted by Eckardt Dauck, managing director of the Berlin-based company, professionals in architecture, construction and sales then focused on the presentation and impressive hands-on demonstration by the company’s engineer, Dirk Niehaus. Some guests were able – despite wearing a suit and tie – to “conjure up” a strawboard wall in minutes.
“I knock on your wall and I can tell how you live …” said the head of a Bremen-based company for ecological drywall, which has used straw panels for many years in interior design. Although intended as a joke, his statement was true – with the solid straw core, STRAWTEC has an impressive load-bearing capacity, that eliminates the issues associated with traditional studwork walls.
Dirk Niehaus: “Convincing physical characteristics, an excellent CO2 footprint, easy installation and the ability to create a pleasant, healthy living and working environment make STRAWTEC a building material that already meets the future requirements for efficient, healthy and environmentally-friendly construction. The construction of partitioning walls does not require studwork or the use of special tools. In addition to the single and double-layer walls, and the fire-proof and sound-proof wall systems, STRAWTEC is also ideal as a heat insulation system for renovation work. Depending on the wall system, STRAWTEC achieves 55 dB sound reduction and a 90-minute fire rating.”
Eckardt Dauck: “STRAWTEC combines future-oriented environmental credentials, the best possible price/ performance ratio and a range of high-quality solutions. A STRAWTEC internal wall can be installed more than twice as fast as a conventional dry wall. That means faster job completion, reduced labour costs and higher staff efficiency on the building site.”
The official topping-out ceremony of the SkyLabs complex, designed and implemented by the internationally renowned Fischer-Architects, Mannheim, took place on 16 September. The occasion provided STRAWTEC with an opportunity to present its wall systems to a select group from international business and politics.