Betonsilo - from zero to hero

From a historic granary to a state-of-the-art medical, creative and office site – the new Betonsilo With the Betonsilo, the refurbishment and ambitious conversion of the Plange Mühle historic building ensemble is now complete. The Betonsilo is part of the Plange Mühle Campus – a lively, future-forward quarter at Düsseldorf’s harbour, planned according to the highest ecological standards in line with the supergreen© principles of ingenhoven associates and with a special appreciation for the existing building fabric. The new Betonsilo Built in 1929, the Betonsilo (concrete silo) comprises ten reinforced concrete cylinders standing nearly 30 metres high and arranged in pairs. It was constructed using free formwork, which was unusual for such construction heights at that time. Since April 2000, it has been a listed building. Today, the Betonsilo houses, among others, a radiology practice and an orthopaedic clinic with reception rooms, surgery, and bed floors; other medical uses will follow. In addition, it offers contemporary office space with magnificent views. Adapting the Betonsilo for contemporary use was a particularly challenging task given the type of building, and the work was conducted in close consultation with the monument preservation authorities. The cylinders were sliced open lengthwise, new floor slabs were inserted by partially demolishing the inner silo walls, and windows were integrated into nine of the cylinders. The cylinder immediately adjacent to the Holzsilo (wooden silo) on the campus side was preserved in its original, closed condition. Inside it are the main staircase, two passenger elevators, and a freight elevator. Daylight now enters all the other silo cylinders through two new aluminium windows on each of the seven floors.. An additional setback floor, the “Überflieger”, serves as a skywalk, connecting the Betonsilo with the neighbouring Holzsilo. Terraces and new floor-to-ceiling windows, the latter already part of the original plans according to building records from 1929, offer expansive views over Düsseldorf Harbour and the city centre. With its topmost accessible level approximately 28.9 metres above the ground level, the Betonsilo is considered a highrise building. The historic stairwell tower, which adjoins the silo cylinders and opens onto the skywalk, was completely gutted. In its place, a new emergency stairwell was integrated that complies with current safety regulations. Since large temporary openings in the facade were not permitted by the preservation authorities, the Betonsilo was revitalized “from the inside and above”: all building logistics were brought into the structure through an opening made in the roof. Instead of a conventional composite thermal insulation system, a 15 cm layer of plaster was applied to the facade during renovation, which also underscores the authentic expression of the entire ensemble. The Betonsilo is part of the new Plange Mühle Campus – home to companies from the fashion, medical, architecture, and consulting industries, plus a variety of catering and event spaces. Traces of the site’s history remain legible: at the heart of the campus is the striking industrial architecture from 1906, the brick buildings of the former Georg Plange wheat mill.