THE CHEŁM COLUMBARIUM Part 2

Sławomir Chudoba: The tender was opened in June 2017. Construction was to take two years. Twenty-seven segments were built on an allotment with the area of 12 ha, with 744 niches for more than 2,000 urns.    

Marcin Chudoba: We handled the task in a year – by the end of June 2018 we will have completed the second stage. The first stage, 432 niches, was ready last autumn.

S.C.: The columbarium is based on a very nice and attractive design. It isn’t just a long wall, as is most often the case in ordinary cemeteries. Each of the segments holds 24 or 30 niches. The positioning of the segments in relation to each other creates a very dignified sacred space with benches and greenery.

M.C.: The project is unusual but it was prepared by investors who had no experience in the implementation of projects where natural stone is used. We encountered problems every step of the way which resulted from a lack of understanding of the issue and the market. It started with the fact that the technical specification said that the segments were to be built from prefabricated elements available “off-the-shelf” on the market. There were no such prefabricated units, and the specification did not provide for additional resources for design and mould making. We were able to cope with this task. Not counting the design work and tests, the cost of making the moulds for casting concrete prefabricates alone consumed more than PLN 100,000. But now we have become a manufacturer of prefabricated elements for the construction of columbaria, the design of which has been registered.

S.C.: It is gratifying that already at the design stage stone was accepted as the finishing material. Maybe it proves that designers are not afraid of stone. For this project we used about 2,000 square metres of stone cladding. Unfortunately, it was not without controversy.      

Source: Kurier kamieniarski

Author: Kurier Kamieniarski   |   Published: 29. 6. 2018