Water Purification Plant

In 2011, Muttenz municipality approached Oppenheim Architecture
to realize a vision for an interactive community experience in a highly sensitive setting. As a result, technology, education and preservation became integral components of the design of Muttenz’s new municipal water purification plant. The unique and important function of the drinking water treatment plant is to create an expressive building – a new landmark for the town of Muttenz and the Basel area.

The plant organically ties in to the natural setting, and the architecture and its natural materials are designed to harmoniously mature together with the site. This allows for a timeless icon, requiring minimal maintenance to its ever-changing facade.

The plant is a model of sustainability, extremely sensitive to its contrasting setting near the Rhine riverfront. Settled between the protected forest and the nearby industrial parks, the project exhibits an educational factor to express the complex purification process in such a stressed environment.

The role of the architecture is to link and express the unique and state-of- the-art technology, placed in a natural ecosystem and emphasizing the importance of the purification process. Functionally, the project not only achieves the goal of purifying water at the highest industry standard, it also draws in the community with its subtle iconic presence and its interior educational community gallery spaces.