Operation within the Existing Structure
Westpfalz-Klinikum, Comprehensive Renewal, Kaiserslautern, DE
The comprehensive transformation and expansion of the clinic took place over a period of more than 20 years. Based on the ideas and construction competition won, the existing structures were successfully renovated, and the medical and functional units were restructured.
Rethinking Hospital Design
The comprehensive renewal of the hospital aimed to reorganize functional workflows in both spatial and organizational terms. Our design approach was guided by three key principles: grouping functionally related departments with comparable installation densities, separating internal and external circulation routes, and minimizing disruptions to ongoing operations.
Multifunctional Building as the Heart of the Facility
The renovation and expansion of the surgical center led to the development of a modern functional building that accommodates a wide range of highly complex facilities within a compact footprint. This treatment building became the functional core of the hospital: Various departments were distributed across five levels with short connections to inpatient wards, the central admissions area, and the new rooftop helipad. A surgical center with eight operating rooms was constructed in the newly added upper floor. These operating rooms are operated efficiently and across disciplines via a centralized control center. A central kitchen was established on the ground floor. Using the energy-efficient “cook-and-chill” method, it can prepare up to 2,000 meals per day.
Urban Planning
We transformed the former Friedrich-Engels-Straße into a two-story internal circulation route – the so-called “Ambulance Street.” Together with the adjacent surgical wing to the south, it forms the functional center of the hospital. Wards and additional medical-functional units were arranged to efficiently cluster around this new core. A second construction phase saw the completion of Ward Buildings III and IV. In parallel, we extended the outpatient care axis: A heart center was built on one side of the Ambulance Street, and diagnostic imaging with CT and MRI was installed on the opposite side. In addition, we centralized the core laboratory at one location and implemented a cafeteria with 200 seats.
By concentrating the new buildings in the northern section of the site, we were able to transform the southern hospital garden into a publicly accessible park – an open space of urban and climatic significance for the city center of Kaiserslautern.
