The warehouse in Strasbourg
The Frenchman François Hennebique (1842 – 1921) was the first entrepreneur who applied the Monier construction method monolithically to complete buildings. By constructing T-beam ceilings with supports which were resistant to bending, he revolutionised reinforced concrete construction. Although he did not have a technical education, not taking into account his vocational training as a mason, Hennebique excelled as a brilliant designer whose buildings were characterized by extraordinary audaciousness.
Since G. A. Wayss could not agree with him on a cooperation, the development of a monolithic construction method was developed by Wayss & Freytag independently. Wrong approaches in the calculation and faults in construction could soon be eliminated, so that in 1899, after various smaller construction works, the construction of the new eight-storey municipal warehouse at the Rhine port in Strasbourg could be realized, being the first large monolithic reinforced concrete building. The contract for the structural works were won in a tender against the German licensee of Hennebique, the company Züblin, and built within a construction period of only four months. There was a 30% saving compared to the costs for the construction method using steel girders and supports which was common at that time. The planning of the structural framework and the site management were the responsibility of the excellent Ludwig Zöllner.