Claudia Uehlinger
Head of Marketing Services
Sales Company Switzerland
Application
The Masoala Rainforest at the Zurich Zoo
A Rainforest in Zurich – A Special Challenge
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On June 30, 2003 the
Zurich Zoo opened the
doors to the Masoala
Rainforest Exhibit. Visitors
to the zoo can now become acquainted with the
plants and animals native
to Madagascar.
As a partner for complete
solutions, Georg Fischer
once again demonstrated
their expertise in the course
of this project.
The Zurich Zoo has conducted a nature
conservation project on Madagascar for
some time already.
The project includes diverse methods of
development aid (drinking water supply, first
aid stations, irrigation of rice fields, equipment for park rangers, education, information, etc.). Furthermore, a tree nursery was
established to produce plants for the
Masoala National Park so that it (and other
wooded areas) can be reforested with
indigenous plants. In building the ecosystem
exhibit, the zoo hopes that visitors will enjoy
learning more about the Madagascar flora
and fauna.
For rainforest plants to even exist in a temperate European climate zone, a building
with ideal conditions must first be designed
and constructed. This project posed several
challenges for the planners and architects.
One example being the roof construction
which had to let a lot of light in while also
maintaining a special insulation effect. In
the end, visitors should be able to experience the natural environment which is home
to the plants and animals of Madagascar
and not all the technology that is required
to make it happen.
80,000 liters daily
for the overhead irrigation
Zurich Zoo
on the Web
www.zoo.ch
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What the visitor sees today is only a fraction
of the sophisticated network of ventilation
and water pipes in the background. The
rainforest building must have a constant
temperature between 17 – 36 °C and an air
humidity of 75 – 100 %.
For the overhead irrigation of the 10,000 m2
a very large amount of water, namely
80,000 liters, is required daily. This enormous requirement is not taken entirely from
the drinking water supply. On top of the
building and in two adjoining buidings,
max. 500 m3 rainwater is collected in each
of the two cisterns, which is pumped every
day into the two day tanks holding 40 m3
each. The water requirement for one day is
treated and prepared through the circulation so that the following morning irrigation
of the exhibit can begin. The actual rainfall
lasts one hour, but this is spread over the
duration of the whole day. The building is
divided into ten sectors with a total of
140 spray nozzles. Two independent pond
systems with a volume of approximately
500 m3 are connected by streams through
which 7 liters of water flow per second.
There is even a water chute over which
100 liters fall per second.
INSIDE No. 3/03
e
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Convincing solutions in plastic
The companies involved in this project:
Builder: Zurich Zoo
Planners: Bosshard + Partner, Zurich
Architect: Gautschi + Storrer, Zurich
Construction engineer: Minikus Witta Voss, Zurich
Landscaping: Vogt Landschaftsarchitekten AG, Zurich
Building technology planner: Getec Zürich AG, Zurich
Plumbing: Preisig AG, Zurich
System provider: Georg Fischer Piping Systems
(Switzerland) AG, Schaffhausen
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1 The Masoala Rainforest Exhibit
in an early phase of construction.
2 Since June, the rainforest can
be experienced at the Zurich Zoo.
3 Irrigation pipes were prefabricated on the ground in lengths of
35 m and then installed under the
roof.
4 The INSTAFLEX pipes made of
polybutene were easy to hang
and connect from the roof
construction because they are so
lightweight and flexible.
No. 3/03 INSIDE
there is no better material, he stressed.
Moreover, he sees further advantages in the
UV resistance, the good water flow (no
deadlegs in the fittings), the light weight
and the flexibility of the material, combined
with the excellent handling. Another outstanding feature is how it absorbs shock.
All in all, the features add up to Georg
Fischer plastic piping systems being the
piping systems of choice, especially the
INSTAFLEX system.
4
The water moves in a permanent circular
flow and is constantly retreated.
Satisfied planners
Ecology and economy were the primary
focus in this unique and impressive example
of architecture and were highly prioritized
in the bidding phase. Thanks to the overall
positive ecobalance and the convincing
features of polybutene, the choice fell easily
to this plastic system for media conveyance.
The planner responsible for the irrigation
system, Oronzo Cocciolo of Getec Zürich
AG, had already had positive experiences
working with INSTAFLEX on another project
with similar requirements. Especially in
regard to the temperature fluctuations,
To transport the rainwater, approximately
3 km of PB pipe were installed in the dimensions 40 to 110 mm. The INSTAFLEX system
proved itself in this case because of its
versatility as mentioned above.
Dieter Fischer, chief service technician at
Preisig AG (plumbing installations), especially appreciated the flexibility of the pipes.
Additionally, the overhead irrigation arcs
could be prefabricated with socket fusion
on the ground in pipe lengths measuring
30 to 35 meters. Four to five men then
heaved the structures up beneath the roof
and the installation was completed easily
with electrofusion. Thanks to this technology,
the installation time spent underneath the
roof was greatly reduced.
The numerous branches in the water treatment system were a particular challenge.
This problem was solved with pneumatic
PVC-U valves from Georg Fischer.
To transport the treated water, ELGEF Plus
for PE pressure piping was used. The ELGEF
Plus system can also be found in the water
circulation for the waterfall, streams and
ponds. Yet another Georg Fischer product
line was used for the wall inlet fittings:
GEBEF in the dimensions up to d180 mm.
Besides the quality of the products, the
advice and support of highly skilled professionals is also decisive in carrying out such
projects efficiently. For this, special thanks
goes to Flavio Regazzoni, Tilo Weick and
Ernst Nyffenegger for their helpful support
on the Masoala project.
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