The Bodensee-Therme Überlingen goes for effeff safety “The safety of our guests is our main priority!”

Überlingen – Here you can feel safe and secure: With the effeff escape route systems by ASSA ABLOY Sicherheitstechnik GmbH, the Bodensee-Therme Überlingen guarantee their visitors absolute safety – and with it twice the bathing pleasure. The uncompromising safety for people and the highest possible protection for property is comprehensively provided with the effeff escape route systems: Irrespective of whether the doors are to be automatically locked or used with authorization, a safe use of the escape routes in emergency situations is guaranteed at all times.

The Bodensee-Therme, awarded five Wellness Stars by the Heilbäderverband [Association of therapeutic Baths] of Baden-Württemberg, is one of the crowd pullers on Lake Constance, the largest lake in Germany on the border triangle of Germany, Switzerland and Austria. It scores both with its position direct on the waterside and also with its architectural peculiarities: The building, designed by Prof Dr Ing Rudolf Wienands of the Technical University Munich with three glass cubes, was awarded the international architecture prize of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Association for Sports and Leisure Facilities (IAKS), the IOC/IAKS Gold Award in 2005. The cube-shaped glass blocks, that reflect the building development round the spa, are the force behind the three functional areas, sports and thermal pool, spa and sauna. The generously glazed south façade with an undulating roof opens to a magnificent view over the lake and the Swiss mountains and optimizes the natural lighting and ventilation of the pool.

Safety and security for 355 000 visitors

Around 355 000 visitors are annually attracted by the Bodensee-Therme – a large number of people whose safety has to be guaranteed daily. “The safety of our guests is our highest priority,” explains Oliver Sternagel, the manager of the Bodensee-Therme Überlingen. “Despite strict legal safety requirements in Germany and all conceivable preventive measures, anywhere where a lot of people meet together there is the possibility of unpleasant incidents with sudden panic reactions,” Sternagel goes on. “We are armed against all eventualities – with escape route technology by effeff.”

Safer emergency exit and protection from unauthorized access

It is firmly fixed in the regional building regulations that the escape routes in public buildings must always be easily accessibly without outside help. All persons who are in a facility at the moment of a particular danger, for example in a fire or a mass panic must be able to leave it as quickly as possible. This mostly conflicts with the security needs of the building managers who want to protect their facilities from unauthorized access. With the effeff escape door terminal 1338-20 by ASSA ABLOY Sicherheitstechnik GmbH the Bodensee-Therme Überlingen guarantees the secure operation of the escape route doors irrespective of whether the doors are to be automatically locked or used with authorization. At the same time, completely safe use of escape routes is possible at all times in emergency situations.  The solution of the ASSA ABLOY Sicherheitstechnik GmbH corresponds to the “Richtlinie über elektrische Verriegelungssysteme von Türen in Rettungswegen (EltVTR)” ["Guideline on electrical locking systems for doors in escape routes”] that the Deutsche Institut für Bautechnik [German Institute for Building Technology] has decreed and that is accepted as the standard for the legal building regulations for the manufacture and testing of escape door systems.

Compact and flexible: effeff-escape door terminals

“The advantage of the escape door terminals 1338-20 for us is in its compactness. The power supply is integrated in the terminals as is also the BUS connection,” explains Oliver Sternagel. “That means that a later networking, for example with access control or fire warning system, is child’s play. So everything is in the device that we will perhaps use at some other time.” And the product manager for electric escape door systems at ASSA ABLOY Sicherheitstechnik GmbH, Ulrich Rotenhagen, adds: “On the electronic control device of the effeff terminals central systems such as building control technology or danger alarm systems can be switched on. Our escape door terminals are network-compatible and can be easily integrated into building management systems.” Moreover the effeff escape door terminals are characterized by their clear acoustic alarms. “The loud Piezo signal device of the terminals ensures attention and guarantees the timely warning of the guests in case of danger,” explains Ulrich Rotenhagen. “For us it is important that the alarm is clearly recognized by all the guests whether they are children or elderly people,” says Sternagel “Particularly in a leisure pool, the noise level is very high. So we are dependent on reliable technology.

Perfect engineering for high-quality architecture

In the Bodensee-Therme Überlingen the escape door locking element is provided by escape door strike 331. “The effeff escape door strike 331 has established itself on the market,” explains Ulrich Rotenhagen. Its advantage: It is concealed once installed. Thus it allows itself to be fully integrated into the geometry of the door. “For a facility like the Bodensee-Therme that is an important aspect. Conspicuous locking elements do not suit our architectural concept,” says Oliver Sternagel. Alongside this however the technical aspect also plays a part: The internal passage height and width of the escape door is not reduced by the 331 door opener. At the same time the integrated supervision contacts for door status and locking alarms ensure a comprehensive protection from manipulation. As a mating component to the escape door strike in the Bodensee-Therme the mortise latch bolt lock 807-10 is used. This is the optimum combination: The mortise latch bolt lock and also the FaFix feature of the door strike ensure that the door strike latch bolt is adjustable and fixable. That facilitates not only the initial installation but also makes for an uncomplicated retrospective adjustment – which is a great advantage particularly in a pool where the doors are subjected to constant fluctuations because of heat and moisture.  “By retrospective adjustment we save costs and time as the door openers do not have to be dismantled or replaced,” Oliver Sternagel is pleased. “With the ASSA ABLOY brand effeff we are not only on the safe side but have also invested in long-term cost-effectiveness.”