Making-of Europaallee Benches

A particularly tricky challenge lay in the production of the curved cast aluminium brackets, which serve on the one hand as a support for the bench and on the other hand as an aesthetic design for the ends of the bench. The team agreed on the aluminium sand casting process as the most target-oriented method. To apply this in such a large length dimension requires in-depth manufacturing and material knowledge. To produce the cast bracket, impressions were made from two negative mould halves using a special sand-oil mixture. Air channels in one of the mould halves allow outgassing and optimal distribution of the liquid aluminium during the casting process. For regular casting quality, the casting temperature of the liquid aluminium had to be perfectly matched to the mould.

The prototype construction after the development phase again produced individual improvements for the subsequent series production. Furthermore, the surface finishes for metal and wood could be sampled and the final seat geometries could be determined. BURRI then subjected the specially manufactured prototypes, which were practically ready for series production, to several months of stress testing in public outdoor areas.

BURRI produced a total of 250 running metres of the large benches, divided into seven different bench typologies, in several stages. Due to the benches, some of which were over 16 metres long, and complex logistics, careful final assembly at a precisely defined location was indispensable. The components required for the production of the benches were manufactured "just-in-time" in close cooperation with specialised suppliers/partner companies and made available for component assembly at BURRI. A decisive factor for the production of these benches in modular design is the high fitting accuracy and precision. For this reason, special fitting gauges were manufactured for the production of the subframes and the screw connection of the wooden sets with millimetre precision. Before delivery, these were checked again for accuracy of fit and interchangeability by means of test templates.