University Cafeteria in Mühlheim an der Ruhr
Next to timber and steel, on rare occasions reinforced concrete is also used as a material for trusses. In the cafeteria building on the campus of Ruhr West University of Applied Sciences, such a truss makes a 10-m cantilever of the upper storey dining hall possible. This overhang creates a versatile, generous and protected outdoor space in the middle of the campus. The space forms the forecourt area in front of the coffee shop on the ground floor. Thanks to the truss, the added construction costs for the column-free space were manageable, since pillars would have been needed along the upper-storey dining hall facade in any case in order to support the roof. These 40 × 40 cm pillars are now inclined at 60°, with about half of the diagonal members under tension instead of compression.
