Page 47 - THE FIRE STATION

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OTHER FIRE STATIONS
On entering the competition for the new fire station in Charleroi,
Philippe Samyn already had experience in designing and building
fire stations, as witnessed by the two stations in the Netherlands,
one in Houten and the other in Enschede.
THE FIRE STATION IN HOUTEN (NL), 1998-2000
The Houten municipal authority requested Philippe Samyn and
Partners to build a small fire station on a greenfield site. Houten
has a mixed fire brigade made up of four professional firemen
and some 60 volunteers.The specifications also provided for
place for six fire and rescue vehicles.
The design was based on a radical separation between the
roof structure and the inside layout, conveying the impression
of a shelter, of a shell independent of the building itself.
The choice of a parabolic form for the roof was the result of a
quest for formal elegance while at the same time optimising the
structure. Speed of construction was a further significant factor
right from the start, as already seen in the preliminary studies.
The building’s interior is divided into two parts.The south-facing
side is designed as an entirely glazed space, making it totally
transparent. Firefighting equipment is stored in what looks like
a large shop display cabinet. Hardly heated at all, this part of the
building is intended as a thermal buffer zone in both summer and
winter All other functions are in the brick-built north-facing part.
Looking out of the open-plan rooms, occupants can see the fire-
fighting vehicles.
The fire station in Houten (NL). Ground-floor plan and sections. (Ref. 01 | 373)
Ground floor facilities include the showers, toilets and changing
rooms, as well as storerooms for mechanical equipment. A meet-
ing room and cafeteria for the firemen are to be found on the first
floor, while the second floor is used for offices. Above this floor
there is room for storing technical equipment.
With the fire station located in a problem neighbourhood of
Houten, 2,200 children aged between 5 and 7 from the city’s
22 primary schools were asked to paint pictures paying tribute
to firemen.The 2,200 DIN A3 panels are reminiscent of flames,
with colours varying from dark blue at the bottom to orange at
the top, with green and yellow in the middle.They are presented
on the main wall of the building, now known as “the firemen’s
house”.The composition looks like a wall of hieroglyphics protect-
ed by a glass facade.The fact that this project involved all Houten
families helped create an emotional bond between the city’s
population and the building. As a result, the “house” is protected
against vandalism, something it would be prone to were it not to
contain a work of art painted by a young member of each family
in the city.
The glazed facade includes large folding doors, designed to let
firefighting crews answer emergency calls quickly.The building
has an east-west orientation, allowing it to benefit from photovol-
taic panels.The overall shape of the fire station has the appearance
of a modern form of hangar.