Office tower in Berlin
Renovation with UBE DUO: High-rise building in Berlin
When the former headquarters of the Senate Department for Urban Development and Housing was built in the 1960s, it was the tallest high-rise building in Berlin. The facade of this listed building on Wuerttembergische Strasse in Berlin-Wilmersdorf no longer met today’s energy requirements and therefore needed to be technically renovated and energy-optimized as part of a general renovation.
The renovation aimed to preserve the historic facade while bringing its structural properties up to the standard of a modern, energy-efficient building envelope.
The new facade construction combines the original architectural expression with a contemporary rear-ventilated facade that meets high standards of thermal insulation and weather resistance.
Planning and technical analysis of the existing facade
During the planning phase, the existing facade structure was examined in detail. Close cooperation between the architects Kahlfeldt Architekten and facade constructor MEDICKE resulted in a renovation concept that took into account both the requirements of historic preservation laws and today’s demands for high-performance facade cladding. The first step was to remove contaminants from the facade, repair damage, and replace numerous elements such as windows and doors. The main supports of the building were then clad with facade panels from Rieder.
The new facade solution therefore had to accommodate large-format cladding elements and integrate thermal insulation without altering the grid pattern of the original facade.
The foundation for the new facade: SYSTEA UBE DUO
SYSTEA supplied a sub-structure system for this challenging project that is optimally matched to Rieder’s glass fiber reinforced concrete panels in terms of load-bearing capacity, corrosion resistance, and installation flexibility:
The core of the new facade substructure is the SYSTEA UBE DUO profile system, a concealed fastening substructure system for rear-ventilated rainscreen facades. The SYSTEA UBE profile system consists of vertical aluminum T-profiles, stainless steel or aluminum wall brackets, and horizontal support profiles, which enable precise and permanently stable mounting of the facade cladding.
The facade panels chosen for this project were Rieder Concrete Skin Formparts with a thickness of 13 mm. This facade cladding made of glass fiber reinforced concrete allows maximum freedom in design thanks to its numerous colors and textures. A total of 1,300 m² of facade area was newly clad.
The large-format cladding elements of the new building facade are concealed in the sub-structure using brackets mounted on the rear. This creates a visually calm, homogeneous facade surface.
The use of fixed and sliding points in the construction allows thermal length changes in the aluminum profiles to be absorbed in a controlled manner – a decisive factor for the longevity of modern facade systems.
The result
is an facade that has been renovated in line with historic preservation guidelines, retaining its original appearance while meeting the technical standards of a modern high-performance facade.
The new building facade offers significantly improved thermal insulation, airtightness, and sound insulation, thus actively contributing to reducing the building’s energy consumption.
As a result of the renovation, the building has now achieved sustainability certification with the BNB-BK-2017 certificate in silver.
The combination of a high-performance facade sub-structure, precise facade cladding, and controlled rear ventilation enables a durable, low-maintenance exterior facade that meets the highest design and technical requirements.
Project details
- Property: Office building at Wuerttembergische Strasse 6
- Location: Berlin
- Country: Germany
- Building type: Administration
- Type of construction: Renovation
- Completion: 2024
- SYSTEA wall brackets: Aluminum
- SYSTEA profile system: UBE DUO
- Cladding material: Rieder Concrete Skin Formparts
- Fastening: Concealed
- Architects: Kahlfeldt Architects
- Contractor: MEDICKE GmbH
- Photos: Ditz Fejer
The UBE DUO profile system
UBE DUO is a profile system developed by SYSTEA for the concealed fixing of facade panels, which is ideal for large-format cladding materials. In this case, glass fiber reinforced concrete panels from Rieder were used, but the UBE DUO profile system is also suitable for HPL, ceramics, porcelain stoneware, fiber reinforced concrete panels, photovoltaic modules, and solar thermal panels, even with low construction depths and for interior applications.
Advantages:
- Precise adjustment: The system allows easy adjustment of the panels using adjusting screws on the back of the cladding elements, which is crucial for a perfect and straight joint pattern on any demanding facade.
- Aesthetics and safety: The completely concealed fastening ensures a consistent, homogeneous facade appearance, preserving the original character of the facade.
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