Germany has always been on the forefront of the ClimateTech space being a leader in not only Europe but the rest of the world when it comes to investment in the nation’s infrastructure and climate policies. EDGE Suedkreuz in Berlin was crowed Germany’s most sustainable building in 2022 and is currently home to Vattenfall, a Swedish power company.
Built by Buro Happold with Architect Tchoban Voss Architecten, Granz & Zecher and de Winder designing the interior architecture EDGE is comprised of two office buildings each with six floors along with the car park underground in order to save space. The push for sustainability within this building resulted in a German Sustainable Building Council or DGNB Platinum certification and according to ArchDaily achieved the highest score ever in Germany with 95.4%. Alongside the DGNB certification EDGE Suedkreuz also achieved WELL Gold taking in the human health concerns alongside building sustainability.
Within the building process the main aim according to Buro Happold was to “reduce the building’s carbon footprint, to use sustainable and healthy materials and to take into account the well being of the future occupants”. One construction method that was used is the modular timber hybrid construction method. This construction method allows the building to utilize stronger wood throughout the buildings while decreasing the reliance on other materials that allows the building to have an overall lower carbon footprint. When looking at the atrium of the building (see photo attached to the right) you can see the amount of wood that was used to create walkways and windows throughout.
The DGNB assessment and award system, similar to the USGBC here in the US, is focused on the building’s holistic sustainability initiatives but also breaks down the awarding systems depending on if its new construction, an exiting building or a renovation. The award levels like LEED go from Bronze fulfilling at least 35% or higher of fulfilling requirements in the topic area to Platinum at the highest with an 80% or higher of fulfilling requirements in the topic areas. According the the DGNB website, DGNB has a share of over “80% in new construction and over 60% in the overall commercial real estate market, the DGNB is the market leader among certification system providers in Germany”.
One of the most interesting aspects of this building is the sheer amount of natural light that is available through the building that has helped to increase the amount of energy efficiency by decreasing the need for artificial lighting. According to Arch Daily the “Four main pillars of the building’s energy supply are sufficiency, efficiency, combined heat and power, and load management.” In having these four pillars EDGE’s owners and operators have created an environment where people are aware of the amount of energy being consumed and have the most up to date energy technology in place to ensure that occupants are comfortable while ensuring efficiency throughout the building.
Interested in Learning More?
Buro Happold Case: https://www.burohappold.com/projects/edge-suedkreuz/
DGNB: https://www.dgnb.de/en/certification/important-facts-about-dgnb-certification/about-the-dgnb-system
Naturally Wood: https://www.naturallywood.com/design-and-construction/hybrid-timber/#:~:text=Hybrid-timber construction systems combine,some use of other materials