8000m² TRBS-compliant facade scaffolding used on new residential complex in Würzburg, Germany
The company Eugen Wahner GmbH from Sulzfeld am Main is old, very old indeed. It was founded in 1853 by Josef Wahner as a painting and whitewashing business. But even in the 170th year of the company's history, Eugen Wahner GmbH, as it is now known, presents itself as a state-of-the-art and future-oriented company. With its two mainstays, scaffolding and corrosion protection, the traditional company headed by Benno Wahner and his son Thorsten has made a name for itself far beyond the borders of Bavaria, and even nationwide. Continuity is a top priority in the company, which has always been family-owned over the years. And in order to arouse the interest of junior staff and the next generation of the family in the business, the strategic orientation is constantly being reconsidered, fresh and modern ideas are brought in and, of course, digitization is also promoted wherever possible.
The painting business was for many years the core business in the Wahner company. Scaffolding was only built for the company's own purposes at that time, with planks and poles, as was customary at the time. The reorientation with the focus on professional scaffolding construction took place in 1955 as well as the specialization in the field of corrosion protection at the end of the 1960s. The transformation into a limited liability company in 1986 was the logical consequence of the company's expansive development. In the meantime, Eugen Wahner GmbH has around 65 employees who are highly motivated and well-trained in their work.
For the scaffolding department, Wahner recently received a highly interesting order from Ed. Züblin in Würzburg. In the Sanderau district, the new "Lichtblick" residential complex is being built on the site of the former Bürgerspital-Wohnstift. 160 apartments, distributed over four buildings as well as a daycare center and a bakery as well as a centrally located green area with recreation and play areas are intended to make the neighborhood a livable and lovable center of life. The focal point of the building ensemble and visible from afar is the 16-story high-rise building with its height of over 50 meters, which is also the subject of the scaffolding contract for the Wahner company.
A total of around 8,000m² of building area had to be scaffolded using a load class 4 scaffold, supplemented by a 30 cm bracket to the inside. After its completion, the scaffold will serve as working and protective scaffold for numerous trades. It is mainly used for structural work, window work, roofing and facade work. The fact that it was not possible to erect the scaffold from ground level on two sides of the building made the erection of the scaffold particularly difficult. This was because underground parking garages were still being connected at these points, the ceilings of which had not yet been completed. Here, the scaffold erection had to start on cantilevered steel girders, which are exposed to high loads and thus required a structural analysis. The same applies to the entire scaffold structure. This is because, due to the fact that the object is to have a curtain wall stone facade, it was not possible to anchor the scaffold in the usual sense, but only at very specific points on the facade surface.
Despite the wealth of experience that Wahner can draw on - also illustrated by the impressive reference list on its homepage - the Lichtblick residential complex was an absolute novelty for the scaffolding specialists. For the first time, it was not the familiar scaffold system that Wahner has been using on its construction sites for decades that was used, but the SUPER-RS scaffold system from Scafom-rux, one of the leading scaffold manufacturers from Hagen in Westphalia.
As mentioned at the beginning, the company from Sulzfeld is always interested in future-oriented solutions. In addition, the scaffolding industry, both manufacturers and users, has for some time been massively confronted with the new Technical Rules for Operational Safety (TRBS 2121). This has led all those involved to find new ways of complying with this TRBS. For this reason, Wahner decided to invest in the SUPER-RS Framescaff system for this job site, which is fully compatible with its existing scaffold inventory. Since the object presented some technical challenges and at the same time a new scaffolding system was used, the planning and execution of the scaffolding was carried out in close cooperation with the technical department of Safom-rux. Jochen Gebauer, technical manager at Scafom-rux, accompanied almost every step and was also responsible for the structural calculations.
When asked why Wahner opted for the system of another manufacturer in this case, Managing Director Thorsten Wahner gives a clear answer: "The SUPER-RS Framescaff has some very decisive advantages for us. This is because we don't have to invest in a completely new scaffold system, but can use essential elements of our existing scaffold system, such as decks, toe boards or guardrails. In addition, the SUPER-RS can take significantly higher loads than the TRBS-compliant systems of other manufacturers thanks to the offset joint between the inner and outer standards." With the use of this new scaffold system, the long-established company Eugen Wahner GmbH has once again demonstrated its pioneering role in terms of progress. And thus created another milestone in the history-steeped company.
