Make room for the new pool

Make room for the pool! A toast to many satisfied bathers…

This was the motto of the delivery campaign for the new swimming pool of the Wildbad hotelier family Richter, which began during the night.

The Hotel Rothfuß in Bad Wildbad is to be renovated and made more attractive for visitors. In addition, this will earn it another star in the wellness categorization. "In addition to the existing sauna landscape, our guests simply lacked a pool," said owner Wolfgang Richter. So, after much consideration, it was decided to build an indoor pool on the hillside property next to the hotel.

The architect Alvaro Campillo was awarded the planning contract for the ambitious project. Connecting an indoor pool to the existing building, both in terms of design and technology, is a major task for planners and the executing handcraft businesses. The company Kissel from Ehningen was commissioned at an early stage with the quote for the building technology and the swimming pool. "We were able to offer everything from a single source - which allows for a quick and smooth installation," says Claus Kissel, owner of the Ehningen sanitary and swimming pool company. "We have been working with RivieraPool for over 30 years. With their prefabricated pools, such a project is feasible very quickly, as the indoor pool is scheduled to open this autumn," Kissel continues.

But what was still to come was a transport of 19 x 5.50 meters through the narrow streets of Bad Wildbad. This, in fact, is intended for the heart of the indoor pool: a prefabricated pool in one piece. Produced by RivieraPool, the pool specialist from Geeste in the Emsland region, about 550 km north of the Swabian spa town. Such a pool transport is only permitted at night between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. That is when motorways and country roads clear the path for such a transport giant. Yet that was not quite the case: just about two hours after setting off, the transport got stuck in a construction site near Mönchengladbach. This was simply built narrower than officially stated in the permit. Thereupon, the long transporter reversed to the last exit and bypassed the bottleneck. That alone was a test of patience and made a second night of travel necessary. The pool arrived on time at the construction site on June 17th at around 5:45 a.m. and positioned itself ready for craning. Before that - the second test of patience - a traffic light intersection had to be crossed with only millimeters of clearance. Naturally, there was tension for the recipients of the oversized cargo, the hotelier couple Richter. They were already sitting in their car at the entrance of the town in the middle of the night, waiting for the swimming pool monster. When the transport finally rolled in early in the morning, a relieved grin appeared on their faces.

For the driver of the giant transporter, it was a masterpiece to have completed the entire route so free of creases and dents. Likewise, the few small bottlenecks at the end were also to be managed without knocking down traffic lights or signs.

The second act of transport was now imminent with the lifting into the excavation pit. The crane company Rothmund from Pforzheim made a 150-ton crane available, which grabbed the 4-ton pool like a toy and lifted it around 35 meters high into the slope over the excavation pit of the Richter family's property above. Then it was lowered into the pit and aligned straight away. Under the astonished eyes of the invited guests, the pool was then christened. The manager of the state bath, Frank Riege, wished for many satisfied guests in this swimming pool at all times. Wolfgang Richter skillfully inaugurated his new pool with a magnum bottle of sparkling wine. The family beamed and was heavily relieved about the successful transport of their new pool.

What follows is the completion of the building with all the building and swimming pool technology. "And that under difficult conditions, because the building technology has to be installed in a very space-saving way - there is still quite a lot to do," says Claus Kissel. However, the temporary result can already be seen at 11:30 a.m. on the first day: filled with fresh Wildbad water, it was already ready for the first trial swim. "That could only work because it was well planned in advance, so we were able to install and backfill already. It's nice if things continue to run so smoothly," Kissel adds.

The facility is scheduled to open in autumn 2010.