The Bethel Children's Centre in Bielefeld is one of the largest and most cutting-edge paediatric clinics in Germany. After six years of planning and construction, the new building of this well-known clinic opened its doors to its first young patients in October 2023.
Specialising in children and young people's medicine, this new building has been equipped with state-of-the-art diagnostic and therapeutic facilities to serve the whole of the East-Westphalia-Lippe region as a large healthcare provider. However, there is one thing that this new children's medical centre should not do, despite its high level of medical expertise, and that is: look like a hospital. Instead, the rooms that are flooded with light and the family-friendly interior create a comfortable environment. Not least due to the use of the Schüco façade, which enables the construction of architecture that is designed to be transparent.
Situated in a valley in the Teutoburg Forest, the complex hospital building playfully integrates into its surroundings. The generous thoroughfare forms the central axis around which the six cubic building structures seem to “dance”. The three-storey pavilions, which house various specialist clinics, reflect the urban structure. The grounds and surrounding greenery that characterise the site permeate the spaces of the children's hospital in an atmospheric way.
The mullion/transom façade from Schüco enables large-scale windows
to be created to let in as much natural light as possible
to be created to let in as much natural light as possible
Children are not just small adults. This is the central idea that runs like a colourful thread through the design with which Berlin-based architectural practice Hascher Jehle Architekur won the competition for the newbuild. As its name suggests, the child is at the centre of it all – both medically and architecturally. Inside the building, a maritime world opens up behind the rainbow-coloured façade, with a reception area reminiscent of a ship's bow.
An artistic, floating ceiling installation made from 3500 semi-transparent glass balls spans the entrance area and links the three storeys together in curving shape that reaches up to the glass ceiling. This art installation was created by artists Heike Weber and Walter Eul. The balls were coloured with marker pens by children from Bielefeld schools at a two-day workshop in the Schüco Arena football stadium. Each glass ball is therefore a work of art in its own right – designed for children by children. All of the balls come together to create one big work of art.
In the central area of the ground floor, images of fish projected onto the floor react to movement. The imaginary water makes waves. It's a place that's deliberately designed by the architects to encourage encounters and communication. In contrast to this, there are oases of retreat in calming colours on a child-friendly scale. Walls decorated with animals help people find their way around the 15,000 m² building complex. No traces of the usual hospital atmosphere can be found here. Because, as the clients, architects, doctors and parents all agree: a sense of wellbeing is a key factor in the recovery process.
Maximum use of natural light with outstanding efficiency
The three storey-high foyer is covered by a twelve by four metre large glass area at the top. The mullion/transom façade from Schüco which surrounds the building enables large glass areas to be created so that plenty of daylight floods the space. The façade units are Cradle to Cradle certified, which guarantees that the materials are recycled by type. The raw materials used are therefore retained for future generations and can eventually be fed back into the raw material cycle. Thanks to extremely slimline profiles, the Schüco window units on the upper storeys offer a panoramic view over the green roof towards Bethel, where the facilities of the Bodelschwingh Foundation integrate seamlessly into the Bielefeld cityscape.
The highly thermally insulated insert units of the façade, which are also Cradle to Cradle certified, combine maximum transparency with the highest level of energy efficiency and allow the young patients to experience a feeling of being outside, even on icy winter days, from the comfort of their rooms. When it is very sunny, the opening units with Schüco ZIP technology offer electronic shading. The weather-resistant fabric reflects up to 70 percent of the rays and provides effective protection from overheating. When not in use, it is concealed in the profile system so that it is barely visible.
Large steel fire doors impress with their modest appearance. They meet the highest demands in terms of building safety and, with their slimline profiles, integrate harmoniously into the open-plan design of the hospital architecture.
From the region, for the region
The new children's hospital accommodates 164 beds and combines medical fields such as paediatric surgery, cardiology, diabetology, oncology and intensive care all under one roof. In future, around 10,000 children will be treated here annually as inpatients and a further 40,000 as outpatients. It is the largest building project in the history of Bethel, reaching far beyond the East-Westphalia border. The fact that over half of the 100 million euros required for the building was funded through donations shows just how much value the children's hospital has for the people in the region and beyond.
Project details
» Architect: HASCHER JEHLE Architektur, Berlin
» Fabricator: Siegfried Wölz Stahl- und Metallbau GmbH & Co. KG, Gundelfingen/Donau
» Location: Evangelical Hospital Bethel (Children's Centre), Bielefeld
Schüco products/materials installed
» Façade: FWS 50.SI mullion/transom façade
» Insert units: Schüco AWS 75.SI+
» Sun shading: Schüco ZIP awning special construction
» Fire protection: Janisol 2 EI30 steel fire doors and Economy fire and smoke doors
