Unique solution for Marzili Youth Hostel by Firescreen®
Marzili Youth Hostel in Bern called in Firescreen® when they built an extension. Capacity was doubled by extending the main building, but this required some fire-resistant solutions which wouldn’t detract from the design. Firescreen® together with its local partner took on the challenge for this historic building.
The challenge
Marzili Youth Hostel has received many guests over the past 60 years, but the historic building required a makeover to keep up with the times. The renovation gave the building a fresh new look, and a new complex was built next to the old building, doubling the number of beds.
The historic building is connected to the new part by a corridor/bar, but that required demolition of an exterior wall. No problem, except that an old round column had to be left in place because of the large span. The architect has given this column an important function in the design, but it was still necessary to create a fire separation between the two buildings without compromising the free passage and open design.
The solution
Firescreen® took on the challenge together with the local partner, and came up with a unique solution. This involved installing retractable Firescreen® Temperature fire curtains, without compromising the design.
By using the column as a division of the fire separation, retractable fire curtains could be used instead of fire doors. However, the greatest challenge was that the lateral guides had to be mounted on a flat surface, which meant the round column couldn’t be used directly. Together with the local partner, a unique solution was devised which involved concealing the lateral guides in the column itself.
The cabinet into which the curtain rolls was also concealed in the plenum, and all the other parts were powder coated in the exact same colour as the walls, minimising their visual impact. As a result, the whole system is barely noticeable, but in case of fire the fire separation is guaranteed.
