ul class="overview_list " id="projectList">

  • Green, greener, Pelikan

    The design sets the urban development capstone for the Pelikanviertel. The original factory premises, the Neikes buildings, the FOUR and the "green, greener PELIKAN" - each stand alone and at the same time relate to each other. The self-similarity of the five buildings creates a strong, characterful unit that responds individually to its neighbourhood.

    Each of the five L-shaped buildings consists of a two-piece "bar" and a "head", which is formed by the accentuation of the high points by means of pyramid-like roofs and represents the prelude to the quarter. The roofs allow the maximum utilization of the plots and increase the recognition value. The range of uses offers variety - from green living, or mansard apartments with roof gardens, to hybrid studio apartments, to a variety of forms of use on the ground floor, which gives the street a unique character. The green oases in the courtyards provide a retreat and are the centrepiece of the design. Intensive greening of the balconies and facades form vertical gardens and, in addition to privacy, sun and noise protection, provide high-quality open space with privacy despite relatively dense development.

    completed
    2018
    30177 Hannover
    Deutschland

  • Theoretikum Halle - Der adaptive Campus

    Closing the gap between the university hospital in the north and the biotechnology campus in the south, the THEORETIKUM complements the science and business location in the north-west of the city of Halle an der Saale. The development site is simultaneously integrated into the urban space, functionally connected to the research and teaching facilities and integrated into the landscape. The proposed concept sees itself as a gradually growing, learning and responsive campus that integrates the existing and takes a holistic view of the new. With innovative research and technology clusters, attractive teaching and learning facilities as well as new service and communication areas, functions are bundled, synergy effects are created and potential for supra-regional impact is generated. As an adaptive campus, the THEORETIKUM is more than its individual clusters.


    The urban structure is formed by the campus loop as an address-giving backbone, a functional overlay of the clusters, building plots with adaptive development options and the integration of landscape qualities. Buildings with independent appearances (old - new, small - large, flat - high, square - rectangular) fit together playfully and, along with the uniform open space design, form a versatile, coherent overall picture. The slightly twisted structures create interesting and surprising room sequences and integrate existing elements (buildings, trees, paths) during the various expansion stages. Three existing high-rise buildings will be retained in the long term as a highly visible ensemble and will be integrated into the campus development.
    The northern entrée forms a counterpart to the UKH and is visually and functionally linked by the redesign of the junction. The pandemic center as the first building block is set back slightly and, together with the campus kiosk, conveys the leap in scale from the existing high-rise building to the loose residential development in the surrounding area. The southern entrance is designed at the mobility hub with an active ground floor. The technology and research centers will be realized as compact building blocks with inner courtyards or atriums and base floors. The active heart is formed by the service and communication center at the intersection of the urban north-south and green east-west connection.

    Idea
    2023
    Halle an der Saale
    Germany

  • Von Bergedorf zu BergeDörfern

    Bergedorf West is confronted with the typical challenges of a 1950s / 1960s housing estate: Few used open spaces, monotonous building structures without centers and orientation points as well as an insufficient structure for foot and bicycle traffic.

    In order to make Bergedorf fit for the future, the housing estate is being restructured and programmatically mixed up. Two open space bands - 1x "stream band", 1x "tree band" - structure the settlement structure in an east-west direction: "Bergedorf becomes mountain villages. New innovative building types enrich the three emerging subspaces. They increase the mix of use and housing, strengthen neighborhood life through public and communal first floors and create lively meeting places within the three neighborhoods. The structuring open space bands connect the three mountain villages, offer sports and recreation facilities and at the same time provide air conditioning, rainwater management and strengthen biodiversity.

    Idea
    2019
    21033 Hamburg
    Deutschland

  • Waldstadt Jüchen

    From an Mining Hole to climate-positiv urban destrict

    The Jüchen South urban planning competition deals with a largely unanswered question: How do we want to deal with the post-mining landscape? And in particular: What does a settlement look like that is built on such an area? Do we leave it at the legally stipulated reclamation and pursue settlement development on a greenfield site? Or do we try to live up to the responsibility that comes with urban development and use the opportunity to make a fresh start, to make amends and to mitigate the damage done to the landscape and the global climate?

    Our contribution formulates a district as a symbol of this new beginning and an exemplary path for the future. It is based on the circular bioeconomy as an innovative economic model. Based on circular principels, the concept focuses on the sustainable value creation of local resources, especially soil, and thus creates the basis for an attractive and healthy living environment. The concept envisages laying the foundation for a new cultural landscape in Jüchen - the Jüchener Stadtwald - on the artificially created landscape area of the former open-cast mine. This forest forms the landscape architectural foundation for the settlement development, has top priority as an efficient ecosystem, is the basis of a sustainable healing process and a central element of the circular economy. It stores CO2, provides climate-positive building materials and food, produces energy, functions as a sponge forest and retention area, protects against noise, wind and dust and offers diverse leisure and local recreational functions. The urban forest in its various typologies forms the economic, urban structural and identity-creating basis of the new urban district.

    Idea
    2023
    Jüchen, Rheinisches Revier
    Germany

  • Urban Living. Vacant sites over the rooftops of the city

    In accordance with building regulations, one could build at least three more full floors on top of the existing multi-storey car park Briesestraße: There is a vacant lot on top of the car park. In static terms one or two additional stories are feasible. By converting the existing floors and adding floors on top a unique building is created with a special atmosphere and spatial quality for different user groups (live and work).

    The concrete areas between the ramps are removed, which allows daylight to reach below street level. The additional units of the 2 ½ storeys are built as a light wooden panel construction. The visibility of the past leads to special appreciation. Thus, the acceptance for a good remix in the neighbourhood is far higher than for demolition and a new beginning.

    Idea
    2013-2014
    Briesestraße 19
    12053 Berlin
    Germany

  • Bremen Könecke Areal

    Hemelingen on the move - A new urban neighborhood Könecke-Areal

    The revitalization and reintegration of inner-city industrial areas is one of the most important planning tasks of the day. These areas are usually excellently developed in terms of infrastructure, which supports sustainable development, and can save a lot of gray energy. Complex ownership, emission sources and soil contamination are challenges that require innovative, robust and flexible urban planning concepts. The design takes advantage of the unique opportunity to free the area from its infrastructural island location in order to reconnect the districts of Hastedt, Seebaldsbrück and Hemelingen by building an urban bridge. Together with the southern (former) Coca-Cola site, which was part of a former urban design process, it forms the new center of Hemelingen.
    The vacated areas will provide what the district needs now and, in the future, - that is an affordable and diverse housing mix, adaptable spaces for working, learning, leisure and culture, but above all it is urgently needed public green space. The new neighborhood park forms the green heart of the entire district and creates a strong address to the future premium bike route that will connect the neighborhood with the center of Bremen.

    Idea
    2023
    Bremen

  • Kronsberg South A.2

    The city block is structured by two cuts towards the public street. In this way, a community courtyard with neighboring pathways is created. The perimeter block development consists of six residential units and twelve townhouses on the east side. The street-facing brick facades are representative and respond to the importance of the entrance to the quarter. The spacious inner courtyard is zoned into a communal green center, surrounding paths and the private gardens lining the first floor apartments. All building entrances are barrier-free and all apartments are planned to be barrier-free. Each apartment has an outdoor sitting area and a small storage room. The underground parking garage is located in an L-shape under the northern block and is accessible from all staircases of the apartment buildings. There are also 145 bicycle parking spaces, some of which are equipped with charging stations.

    Idea
    2020
    Kattenbrookstrift
    30539 Hanover
    Germany

  • Klimaquartier Würselen

    The Klimaquartier Würselen is characterized by strong open space references and clearly defined urban spaces. It mediates between the new and existing settlement bodies, the various neighborhoods and the open landscape in the east. In order to meet the current climatic changes and the scarcity of resources, the neighborhood will be developed in a space- and material-saving manner using timber construction; water and other resources will be used locally and treated on site.

    The new neighborhood landscape complements the existing open block perimeter while forming defined neighborhoods with intimate courtyards that combine village courtyard structures with play streets. The small-scale buildings surround the Green Center, which forms the heart of the neighborhood and functions as a meeting space for the surrounding neighborhoods.

    All buildings are based on the same construction grid, which corresponds to the deep garage grid of 5m. The bulkhead construction method, optimized for timber construction, forms the basis for the feasibility of the various building typologies. At the same time, repetitive building elements and construction principles ensure efficient planning and minimized construction times. The efficient basic structure allows for a variety of floor plan types - from one-room apartments to row houses to group apartments.

    Idea
    2022
    Würselen-Broichweiden

  • Bar Center Fier

    Building on existing structures.

    The plot of Bar Center in Fier (Albania), located next to our projects Rinia Complex and Building Block on a central urban intersection and adjacent to an inner-city park, was occupied by an existing building from the late 1990s. This building – the plinth of an unfinished high-rise, which stood at three storeys high – was unassuming and unfitting for this prominent location; therefore, the owners approached us to extend the building and upgrade the existing floors. So we used the volume of the existing building as a starting point for the design.

    The addition activates the upper floors and makes them directly accessible from the new main square of Fier, to which the building now prominently orientates. The result is a stepped five-storey volume enclosed in a geometrical, rasterized façade. This geometrical façade, in turn, is partially clad in semi-transparent golden shading sheets, which function as a screen against the sunlight. Additionally, they bring more unity to the building's appearance. The volume, whose two newly added floors contain a publicly accessible rooftop bar with views over Fier, offers an urban topography that serves the city as a whole.

    completed
    Fier
    Albania

  • Ludwigsfeld München

    Like a coat, the development wraps itself around the greened-out Ludwigsfeld estate. It does this conceivably loosely and discreetly over open spaces. The dissolution of grains and densities of use is small-scale in relation to the existing buildings and protects them from noise at the edges.

    The concept proposes four different urban building blocks to complement the Ludwigsfeld settlement: green residential courtyards, active neighborhood houses, a cautious addition to the existing buildings, and flexible neighborhood garages.
    Through compact and green residential courtyards with a diverse appearance, a variance in the number of stories and vertical greening, the targeted density is achieved with high residential and open space quality. In relation to the existing buildings, the residential courtyards dissolve into an open development, which also adapts in terms of the number of stories and mediates via community gardens.
    Four neighborhood houses at a central location in the neighborhood link the living with base areas for supply, social facilities and community uses. As project building sites, special forms of housing can be implemented here in alternative development models. Through a striking design and the active ground floor areas, they are crystallization points in the public space.

    The design supports the goal of a sustainable and CO2-neutral neighborhood development. The infrastructures required for the planned energy concept are integrated into the urban design and areas for energy generation are demonstrated accordingly.

    Idea
    2023
    Ludwigsfeld, München

  • Green Wave. Glitnir Bank Hq

    The design concept 'Green Wave' generates a holistic image and a characteristic coastal skyline for the site of Kirkjusandur in Reykjavik, Iceland. Two design principles characterize the appearance of all buildings: The dynamic shape of the wave as an aesthetic concept and the integration of green spaces as vital elements of functional and atmospheric quality. The new headquarters of Glitnir Bank, a nine-storey building addressing the prominent highway Sæbraut, will be the key figure for the future development.

    The elevated entrance plaza is secluded from the public flow on ground level and sheltered from heavy winds coming from the shore. Open working spaces can be organised and subdivided flexibly. Winter gardens on each floor increase internal lighting, provide space for informal communication and create a comfortable atmosphere and climate. A decentralized ventilation system and a heating system based on geothermal energy are implemented, which are economical in maintenance, space-saving and highly energy efficient. The façade consists of tilted glass elements creating a "deep skin" that reflects natural and artificial light in different angles.

    Idea
    2006/07
    Laugarnesvegur 52
    105 Reykjavik
    Iceland

  • Railway District

    The starting point of the urban development concept is the creation of two strong open space connections that act as a green bracket, embedding the new quarter in the urban context in a variety of ways and interweaving it with this context. The green bracket links the very different and previously separate urban open spaces of Gleisharfe and Hauptfriedhof. The two open space sequences structure the hitherto unorganized urban space and give the neighborhood development a clear contour.

    The adjacent greenery flows into the neighborhood and picks up on the existing space-creating structures such as groups of trees and fallow land to interweave them with the neighborhood spaces. This creates a lively place with its own identity in a central location. The guiding ideas of BAHNSTADT are consistently developed further. In the midst of the green brackets, a compact and densely mixed urban quarter is created, which is divided into sub-segments by three axes across the green spaces. They create direct path relationships and clear orientation in the urban space.

    completed
    2022
    Braunschweig

  • Vocational College of Machinery and Irrigation - VCMI (Vietnam)

    The design of the VCMI campus is based on sustainable principles in order to handle climate and urban challenges the area is exposed to. The masterplan aims for a clear functional zoning which allows future growth. The area reserved for sports can provide a diverse offer, as an educational complement for the students, but also space, passive to be rented, so the school can reinforce economical sustainability. The proposed area dedicated to teaching and training will allow VCMI to multiply its current offer. The Campus is organized around a cooling pond which is the centre of the water treatment concept: Collected rain water can be extracted for the use of grey water in the buildings. Complementing the new expansion is also forecast a Centre of Excellence for Green TVET, an institution that is inscribed in the scope of the Vietnamese-German Financial Cooperation. The junction of these two institutions will trigger synergy effects, unlocking the campus true potential, towards the aim of establishing themselves as one of the forefront regional institutions, but also contribute needed tools, to a resilient climate change in Vietnam.

    in progress
    2015
    Hiep Hoa, Bien Hoa, Dong Nai, Vietnam
    Dong Nai
    Vietnam

  • Parkway Heidelberg

    „Think about people first, then about traffic routes. A good city is like a good party. People stay there longer than necessary because they feel good." This quote from Danish urban planner Jan Gehl sums up our planning understanding of the Parkway well.

    The Parkway is a place that is finely networked, that relates building and open space uses in a variety of ways, and that actively supports climate resilience. A green and diverse space that constantly links the opposites of MOBILITY and DISTURBANCE. Due to the valuable and spatially defining existing trees in the Patrick Henry Village as a starting point, the route was designed in such a way that as many woody plants as possible are preserved. Rainwater is stored in swales, infiltration trenches and rain gardens as a valuable resource, benefiting plants and groundwater. The paved areas are reduced to a minimum and designed as light-coloured surfaces.

    The paving material is a newly developed and market-introduced climate stone which absorbs rainfall and can evaporate as much water as a meadow surface (50% instead of 11% to 18% as with conventional paving stones).
    The Parkway fulfils the function of a linear park with a high quality of open space, encounter and stay, serves as an inner and outer distributor for the Patrick Henry Village and provides a safe framework for a broad variety of urban mobility types.

    completed
    2023
    Heidelberg

  • Time for Lausitz

    1 room | 2 engines | 3 fields

    With the cessation of coal mining and power generation, the region of the Lausitz is deprived of one of its central economic foundations. Many employees will lose their jobs as a result of the necessary climate and structural policy decisions. At the same time, the region is confronted with the ecological consequential damage caused by years of resource depletion.

    The crisis-ridden development shows that a sustainable economic, social and ecological development in the Lausitz can no longer be based on linear systems, but that a circular economy must be built up more and more and on various levels and standards. It is time to promote material cycles, energy cycles, the hybridization of infrastructure, the networking of sectors and value chains, to establish synergies and to generate meaning.

    The key to sustainable development in the Lausitz is a careful approach that is differentiated in terms of time and space. There are a handful of clearly identifiable development drivers that can add value to the region in the short- and medium-term. They form the drivers of regional development, so to speak, and also network the Lausitz nationwide. Promoting them in a targeted manner should be the first focus of the investment.

    With the conversion of the Lausitz into a model region for organic farming, sustainable forestry and resource-conserving timber management, it can not only open up new sources of income for the primary sector but also significantly increase the attractiveness of the region as a place to live, as a location and as a holiday resort/destination. The structural funding promised for the phase-out of coal should therefore also benefit the primary sector and thus strengthen sustainable value chains.

    completed
    2021
    Territory of Lusatia (Lausitz), southern Brandenburg and eastern Saxony
    Germany