The Cistercian monastery Rechentshofen is located to the south east of Hohenhaslach, a town in Germany’s Stuttgart metropolitan area. The monastery was constructed around the year 1240, when the Gothic period began to shape local architecture. Today, the entire meaningful ensemble of buildings is under heritage protection and is currently undergoing extensive renovations to make space for a generous equestrian centre. The coming months will see the experts start work on the dilapidated old blacksmith building located on the property.
Jörg Dittus, Managing Director of Dittus Scaffolding in Heilbronn, had his team erect a completely free-standing Allround Scaffolding for this project. It supports a fully enclosed Cassette Roof at 9 metres and 12 metres height, which will protect the ancient structure from weather conditions during the renovation works. “We have been relying on Layher products exclusively since starting our company in 1967, for the simple reason that it is the only material that offers the quality and precision we need for doing our work efficiently and safely”, says Dittus in summing up his opinion. “The fact that all the various Layher components that have accumulated here over the years are still officially approved equipment that can be combined in any possible way offers my company the highest level of investment security I could possibly think of.” In addition to the full range of scaffolding services, Dittus’ company also offers professional solutions in the area of grandstands for a wide range of events.
It’s simple: everything just fits together
Dittus commissioned a team of five workers to erect an Allround Scaffolding around the former monastery chapel that is structurally connected to the blacksmith building. The entire planning of the scaffolding and roof for this special project was prepared by the Layher Technical Department. The fact that the walls of chapel and blacksmith buildings were interlocking called for a solution that would allow the protective roof structure to rest on one side of the Cassette Roof without additional support. This requirement was solved by an additional transverse-mounted lattice girder to provide dedicated support for the roof truss. Additionally, the cantilever scaffolding was secured against wind impact by a wider footing and additional ballast. The six truss bays with a weight of 1.6 tons and a width of 17 metres each, which had safely been pre-assembled on the ground, were fitted at height using a mobile 60-ton folding crane, which allowed the scaffolding workers to mount the parts quickly and precisely on the prepared Allround substructure. It didn’t take long for the Layher material to once again prove its outstanding flexibility when the specialists were tasked to build around a protected tree that could not be pruned. Temperatures around freezing point with intermittent soft hail were an additional challenge to the occupational safety of the workers on the roof fields. They used a safety rope, which ran across the whole length of the trusses and allowed them to work safely and without their movements being obstructed by annoying safety equipment attached to them.
Sturdy and highly flexible
The Layher Cassette Roof consists of a truss substructure with corrugated iron cassettes on top, which are easily secured using wedges and clamping plates. Transparent cassette elements are also available to provide additional daylight to the construction site. The individual components are fitted with convenient handles that allow assembly by only two workers from a secured position. Individual cassette elements can be removed to allow for access, i.e. for bringing in building materials. The structure can be walked on and will withstand snow load. The Layher Cassette Roof solution can be mounted on both the Layher SpeedyScaf as well as the Allround System and not only offers protection for construction sites, but is also a quick and straight-forward solution for temporary hall constructions when combined with the Layher Protect System. “One of the major advantages of the systems offered by Layher is their great flexibility and range of available standard components, which allowed us to complete most of our projects without any expensive or time-consuming custom solutions”, Dittus explains from the perspective of an experienced scaffolding expert.
Roof solutions that open up new business possibilities
Layher roofing solutions offer additional market potential for the business of Jörg Dittus, whose company is in the scaffolding and grandstand business. Professional structural protection is only one of the many areas where Layher Cassette Roofs are the ideal solution. They can also be used for the rapid construction of large and sturdy hall structures, i.e. for events, exhibitions or concerts. “As is the case with all Layher products, we can always rely on the precision quality and straight-forward assembly of their roof solutions”, Dittus explains. “If we ever have a question or need technical assistance in the planning phase, we simply call their engineering department who are always happy to help us out. This level of quality and service is really unique to Layher”, Dittus says in wrapping up the conversation.
