Press Release. A flying carpet for Copenhagen city centre. Sports surfaces and soft-impact areas as a design element:

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1 Press Release Sports surfaces and soft-impact areas as a design element: A flying carpet for Copenhagen city centre Schoolchildren on a break from lessons, townies out for a stroll, walkers in need of a rest or youngsters playing basketball whatever the season or time of day, the newly designed Israel Square (Israels Plads) in Copenhagen offers many different vibes. This open space was designed jointly by Sweco and COBE, who compare the concept behind it to a flying carpet. At its heart is a large, oval, dark surface with a round pitch for handball, football and basketball in the centre. One of the distinctive features used in the design is a dark grey sports surface from Polytan: the architects were particularly taken with its changing colour depth. Polytan has also provided a light grey softimpact surface in the playground to protect against injury. When Copenhagen's wholesale market relocated to the outskirts of the city in the 1950s, an underground car park was built beneath the market square, which was an area of greenery at the time, and the open space was also given a new name: "Israels Plads". The waterproofing system in the underground car park had fallen into a state of disrepair by the start of the 21st century and had to be completely replaced. A decision to redevelop the urban space situated above was taken during the course of these costly renovations. The Sweco/COBE design team clinched victory in the competition in 2008 with the idea of a "flying carpet" rising up from the ground and accessible by steps and ramps. A new link between park and city Israel Square covers an area of 12,500 m² and, as the basic design concept, now forms an urban link between Ørstedsparken in the south and the city centre in the north. The park enhances this impression by continuing across the square in the form of "cut-outs" planted with trees. These planted circles gradually diminish on the way into the city. The flying carpet itself consists of light granite tiles which are situated above ground level. A 25 cm high, 45 cm

2 wide, rust-coloured frame made of weatherproof structural steel forms the visual ending to the square. The stone carpet unfolds into a pyramid-shaped tiered seating area at the western and eastern corners. As well as plenty of seating options, the architects' overall design concept also incorporates lots of space for exercise, sport and play. A mini-skate park for children is another example of the new leisure activities on offer, as well as a circular play area next to the spiral-shaped entrance to the underground car park. However, the real centrepiece of Israel Square is the oval seating/reclining area, which covers around 1,350 m² and has an asphalt sports pitch in the middle. Non-slip, easy-maintenance soft-impact sports surfaces from Polytan The seating/reclining area ripples gently down to the pitch and consists of a Polytan S sports surface with two layers of highly compressed granules and a total thickness of 40 mm. In spite of its smooth surface, this all-rounder from Polytan is non-slip and can be used all year round as it is waterpermeable and therefore dries out quickly. It makes a perfect base for sitting, reclining and cheering on new team-mates in Israel Square. In order to produce the dark colour, which changes in depth on closer inspection, 80% of the top layer is composed of granules in slate grey, 5% of granules in pearl white and 5% of granules in mid-grey, as well as 10% of granules made from recycled trainers. The architects opted for the Polytan FS soft-impact surface for the approximately 160 m² circular play area near the entrance to the underground car park. Whilst this surface also consists of two layers of highly compressed granules, it is 50 mm thick and has a cushioning effect to safeguard against injury. In this case, the surface gets its requisite light grey colour from the following composition of coloured granules: 80% mid-grey, 5% pearl white and 5% slate, together with 10% recycled trainers

3 Captions: (More pictures available) Israelplatz_Polytan_1.jpg Since 2014 the redesigned Israels Plads in Copenhagen has been the urban link between Ørstedsparken in the south and the city centre in the north. Israelplatz_Polytan_2.jpg Ørstedsparken continues across Israel Square in the form of round "cutouts" planted with trees. There are fewer and fewer of these planted circles on the way into the city. Israelplatz_Polytan_3.jpg The safety fence around the playground has a distinctly filigree appearance: its rolling shape is barely discernible from a distance

4 Israelplatz_Polytan_4.jpg The seating/reclining area ripples gently down to the playground and consists of a multi-purpose Polytan S sports surface. The dark-grey colour changes tone on closer inspection a detail that particularly appealed to the architects. Israelplatz_Polytan_5.jpg Two schools use Israel Square as a schoolyard. Streetball tournaments and flea markets are also held here during the summer months. Israelplatz_Polytan_6.jpg Thanks to its cushioning properties, the soft-impact Polytan FS surface protects against injury. In Israel Square the material is used in the playground area. Photos: Rasmus Hjortshøj COAST -4-

5 Construction site sign: Project name: Israels Plads, Copenhagen, Denmark Project type: Redesign and redevelopment of a public square Location: Copenhagen city centre Architecture: Sweco Architects A/S, Copenhagen ( COBE, Copenhagen, Denmark ( Engineering firm: Niras, Copenhagen Art in architecture: Professor Morten Straede General contractor: Barslund Awarding authority: City of Copenhagen Competition: First prize 2008 (Sweco Architects + COBE) Start of construction: March 2013 Completion: December 2014 Area of square: 12,500 m² Polytan products used: Seating/reclining area (around the sports pitch): approx. 1,350 m² Polytan S sport surface, d = 40 mm; EPDM coloured granule composition (top layer): 80% slate grey + 5% pearl white + 5% mid-grey + 10% recycled trainers Playground (next to underground car park entrance): 126 m² + 32 m² Polytan FS soft-impact surface, d = 50 mm; EPDM coloured granule composition (top layer): 80% mid-grey + 5% pearl white + 5% slate grey + 10% recycled trainers - 5 -

6 Polytan GmbH: Polytan is a German company and has been the leading specialist and consultant in the production, sale and installation of outdoor sport systems for over 40 years. The spectrum of services includes the supply of products, the installation of synthetic surfaces for athletics tracks, all-weather pitches, elastic layers for synthetic turfs, the supply and installation of synthetic turf systems, lining, repairs and the cleaning of sports surfaces. Polytan makes all the products in its own factories with a high level of vertical integration. Polytan is a licensee of the FIFA Quality Concept for Football Turf and a FIFA Preferred Producer. In addition, Polytan has approvals from all the main sports organisations (e.g. FIH for hockey pitches, IAAF for athletics tracks). As a manufacturer and supplier, Polytan meets all the requirements of national and international quality standards. Agency contact: Seifert PR GmbH (GPRA) Barbara Mäurle Zettachring 2a Stuttgart 0711 / barbara.maeurle@seifert-pr.de Company contact: Polytan GmbH Tobias Müller Gewerbering Burgheim / 8771 tobias.mueller@polytan.com - 6 -