2023-06-28 03:17:48
The reconstruction of the Glacier 3000 restaurant in Les Diablerets (VD), destroyed by fire in September, has begun. The famous Ticino architect Mario Botta is once again in the game.
“We have almost completed the deconstruction phase. From next week, we will begin the reconstruction,” Bernhard Tschannen, boss of Glacier 3000, said on Tuesday during a meeting with the press.
The structural work should be completed by the end of October. The next six months will allow the interiors to be finished, for an opening scheduled for next spring.
The new building was designed by Mario Botta, who had already contributed to the initial project in 2000 before withdrawing due to disagreements with the promoters of the time. “I wanted to renew the appearance of the construction by giving it an even more solid and resistant character,” he noted.
As an architect, “my bet is to convey an emotion to clients: they must feel that they are between heaven and earth, that they are experiencing something unique”, added the 80-year-old man from Ticino.
No more self-service
If the exterior appearance of the building will be almost identical, for reasons of building permits, the interior has been redesigned. In particular, new panoramic windows in the corners have been added. The work will also allow a surface gain of 35 m2 per floor.
The restaurants will offer a total of 400 seats on two floors. A panoramic terrace of 250 m2 will also be created on the roof.
Among the other novelties, orders will be made via a QR code and the dishes will be served at the table. “Self-service in ski boots is a thing of the past,” said Bernhard Tschannen.
Fire foggers
In terms of energy, 600 solar panels will be added to the facade and the eaves, enough to make the building almost autonomous. The heat released by the ventilation of the kitchens and the operation of the cold rooms will be recovered to produce hot water.
The insulation of the building has also been reviewed to minimize heat loss, “a very important point at 3000 m altitude”, noted Bernhard Tschannen.
Fire safety has been improved. A new fire extinguishing system using foggers has been installed.
Ongoing investigation
The boss of Glacier 3000 again underlined the “very special” nature of this project. The materials are transported by cable car. Significant security work must also be undertaken to resist wind, frost and snow. Not to mention more strenuous work, oxygen starting to run out at 3000 m.
For the record, the fire broke out on the night of September 18 to 19. No one was in the building at the time. If the cable car had remained intact, the restaurant had been destroyed.
The investigation is still ongoing to determine the exact causes of the accident. Any criminal act has however already been ruled out, the investigators, moving rather towards a technical problem.
This article has been published automatically. Source: ats
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