2020-11-06

Renovation of the Magazinul Bucureşti department store building features ALUPROF systems

After three years of reconstruction work, a commercial symbol of Bucharest has regained its former glory. The Magazinul Bucureşti department store building has been restored in line with a design by architect Mario George Kuibuş which fully respected the historical structure. Combining its distinctive, pre-war forms with modernity was possible, in part, thanks to the innovative aluminium systems provided by Polish company ALUPROF SA.

At the heart of historical Bucharest stands a ninety-year-old building well-known to the city’s residents. Magazinul Bucureşti, which served as a department store over the decades, has been reconstructed. Handed over in February this year, it offers retail, services, office and catering space.

A historical façade with innovative glazing

The new chapter in the history of the former department store was opened by two Dutch developers, Gerard Heinen and Johannes Jozefus Maria Baakman, who are steadily regenerating historical buildings in Romania’s capital. The old façade has been preserved and characteristic elements of the old architecture have been restored. In both cases they have also been adapted to the new, class A design. The glass axis marking the centre of the front wall has been retained, as have the unique, curved, glazed showcases at the entrance, which have survived from the pre-war era to this day in their original form.

In accordance with the architects’ thinking, the original elevation has become a frame for cutting-edge aluminium joinery. Solutions by ALUPROF S.A., one of Europe’s leading aluminium systems manufacturers, which have made their mark as the perfect match for modern building standards, offered the ideal means of bringing the designers’ concept to life.

Daniela Leonte, Technical Advisor for ALUPROF System Romania SRL provides some details:

The glazed façade was based on the ALUPROF MB-SR50N, one of our mullion and transom, curtain wall systems, which made it possible to build harmonic elevations with visible, slender dividing lines and, at the same time, to ensure a solid, hard-wearing structure. The shape of the profiles meant that the surface could be made flush on the interior, giving the visual effect of a uniform truss. At the same time, it simplified the process of creating precise and aesthetic joins with other parts of the construction elements, in other words, the interior partitions and suspended ceilings. The system also allows us to match components like accessories and connectors and that enables us to increase the load-bearing capacity. An infilled, fixed window module in the façade has a capacity of up to one thousand, one hundred kilograms.

The ALUPROF MB-60E thermally isolated door system was also used for the building, as was the MB60E EI fire-resistant partition system, with doors, and the MB-78EI transparent, fire-resistant, mullion-free partition system. The MB-78EI is a solution which makes it possible to build interior partitions with no visible, vertical profiles dividing the individual modules while still maintaining full fire-resistance.

During every stage of the construction work on the building, the restrictive environmental protection rules were observed, particularly as far as noise was concerned.

In total, Magazinul Bucureşti offers around three thousand, one hundred and fifty square metres spread over seven storeys. There are excellent transport links with other parts of the city. Universities and schools are located nearby. So is the Lupa Capitolina monument. Presented to the city by Italy, it shows the she-wolf nurturing Romulus and Remus and it has become one of Romania’s most important symbols.