Sint Nicolaaslyceum


Address	Beethovenplein 2
Neighbourhood	Zuidas
Plan	Beethoven
City	Amsterdam
Architect	Richelle de Jong, Chris de Weijer, Robert Alewijnse
Office	DP6 Architectuurstudio
Commisioner	Stichting V.O. Amsterdam-Zuid (SVOAZ)
Realized by	J.P. van Eesteren
Accessible	Tram 5, bus 65, stop Prinses Irenestraat
More	Dit gebouw was genomineerd voor de Gouden A.A.P. 2013.
Start	2008
Realized	2012
Category	Onderwijs
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AAP AAP 2013	Renewal in educational buildings The quality of educational buildings is a much talked about subject. Many educational establishments are antiquated. This was also true of the school St. Nicolaaslyceum. The old building was the worse for wear, impractical and expensive to maintain. In 2006, therefore, it was decided that it was time for a new, modern building. Work began on the construction of the new building in 2010 and it was ready for use at the end of 2012. The new, compact school building was designed by DP6 architectural studio. The design is typical of contemporary educational construction projects. Increasingly, designers find themselves in the field of tension between inflated norms and reduced budgets. The sharpened requirements with regard to energy, insulation and use combined with lower budgets results in compact buildings. In this case, the buildings compactness is due to the expensive land next to the (future) headquarters of multinationals such as Akzo Nobel, but it is also due to sustainability considerations; a volume with a smaller surface area can be heated more efficiently. Sustainability played a key role in the design. The building is so designed that it makes optimum use of solar orientation. In addition, the building is equipped with a climate control system, as a result of which it is more energy efficient. The atrium, where pupils come together in their breaks and where theatre productions take place, plays a key role in the buildings climate control, making use of solar heat and the ascending warm air. There is also a screen on which pupils can read the schools energy consumption, making them aware of energy use. In addition to sustainability, acoustics was a key aspect in the design for the new building. The school is equipped with some 40,000 white baffles, cylindrical sound absorbing elements that are used in spaces where there is excessive echo or where concrete core activation is used to heat the building. The baffles create pleasing acoustics and give the building an original and modern appearance. (ARCAM/AK)