Humboldt Forum

U Protect Insulation: Humboldt Forum

Complex cable routing for insulate room cooling

Whatever your requirements in terms of energy efficiency, fire protection and sound insulation, U Protect Pipe Sections are an ideal solution for almost any pipe insulation needs, even if you have very limited space. Let’s look at how U Protect insulation was used for the Humboldt Forum.
 

THE HUMBOLDT FORUM, Berlin, Germany

• 30,000 m² of usable space

• 45,000 metres of pipework

 
Behind the reconstructed facades of the Berlin Palace, the Humboldt Forum will be a radiant landmark staging the best of the capital’s cultural offerings. To be completed in 2020, the impressive new building is offering more than 30,000 m2 of usable space. Almost as impressive as the building itself, 45,000 metres of pipework have been installed to heat and cool the building, ensuring the interior of the building provides a pleasant indoor climate for visitors and exhibits alike.

The complexities of the cooling system

Stainless steel pipes (DN 50) and carbon steel pipes (>DN 50) carry cold water with temperatures from the central refrigeration plant to the ventilation units distributed throughout the building. The air is cooled and fed then into the ventilation circuit for room cooling. In addition, the pipeline network integrates an ice reservoir, a geothermal centre and a centre for component activation.

Choosing the right pipe insulation

The contractor IIC Industrie Isolierung Chemnitz GmbH chose to use U Protect Pipe sections to ensure the job could be completed to high specifications and tight deadlines. The all-in-one nature of the product allowed for continuous, fire-safe insulation even through floor and wall penetrations.

Adapting to confined spaces

A major challenge for the insulation professionals from Chemnitz was the location and arrangement of the cables, which were routed in system floors as well as over suspended ceilings or technical levels. “On the one hand, we needed a system that could be adapted very precisely to the geometries of the pipes. On the other hand, the work had to be as simple as possible in order to keep to the tight schedule,” explains Danyel Schlennstedt, Project Manager at IIC Industrie Isolierung Chemnitz GmbH.

An efficient dual solution for pipe insulation

The 2-in-1 system allowed continuous pipe insulation as well as the production of R90/R120 bulkheads in wall and ceiling penetrations. This meant that even long distances through many fire compartments could be insulated efficiently and in a short amount of time without changing material. “It makes a difference whether you have to set aside the sectional insulation for each penetration and take a separate product or whether you can ‘work through’ it with a non-combustible system,” continues Danyel Schlennstedt.

Lightweight for easy installation

What also immensely simplified the work was the low weight of the pipe sections. In comparison to conventional rock wool products, they weigh around 50% less. With around 45,000 linear meters of cables to be insulated, this is a tangible physical advantage," concludes Danyel Schlennstedt.

Did you know…?
 

U Protect Pipe Sections are made of high-performance ULTIMATE™ mineral wool:

• Melting point of > 1,000 °C (non-combustible, Euroclass A2-s1, d0)
• Thermal conductivity of 0.035 W/(m*K), the pipe sections also conform to EnEV 035
• Tear-resistant aluminium facing
• Use for cold pipes (with a medium temperature of ≥6 °C) at ambient temperatures of up to 25 °C and a relative humidity content of maximum 60%