Sustainable Silver Fir Timber Wraps This Elegant Village Fire Station in Austria

<a href="http://www.dietrich.untertrifaller.com/en/projekt/fire-station">Dietrich Untertrifaller</a> went to great lengths to ensure that this striking timber-clad fire station fit the vernacular architecture of its site in Sulzberg-Thal, Austria. Unlike any fire station we have ever seen before, this beautiful building was integrated into a sloping landscape and features a facade of <a href="http://www.weisstanne.info/en/die_weisstanne/Oekologie_en.php">beautiful silver fir timber</a> that grows rapidly in Europe. Transparent on two sides, the building has become an iconic facility that is partially open to the public view, facilitating a kind of dialogue between passersby and the workers who keep them safe from fire!

We've never seen a fire station quite like this before

Clad in sustainable silver-fur, it blends in seamlessly with the Austrian village vernacular

Glazing on two sides permits plenty of daylighting

External shading mitigates excess solar gain

The building was set into a sloping hill

The partial openings ensure that this home is accessible to the public as well.