ZÜBLIN starts construction work on CARL timber hybrid high-rise in Pforzheim

Aiming high with wood: Ed. Züblin AG, in the capacity of general contractor, is teaming up with ZÜBLIN Timber to build the CARL timber hybrid high-rise in Pforzheim on a turnkey basis for Baugenossenschaft Arlinger eG. The new 14-storey building will reach a height of around 45 m and, with its striking façade, is set to become an architectural landmark. The residential construction project is a timber construction highlight that also includes the turnkey construction of two adjoining buildings with four and six storeys each as well as a joint underground car park. The contract for ZÜBLIN has a total volume of € 29.2 million. The design for the three-part building complex comes from the Pforzheim-based architectural firm Peter W. Schmidt.

Work on the project in Carl-Hölzle-Straße in Pforzheim’s Arlinger district began with a ceremonial groundbreaking on 25 October. Completion is scheduled for November 2023 after some two years of construction. In addition to a total of 73 new flats including underground parking spaces, the building ensemble will also house a day care centre and a bakery with a daytime café.

Construction elements made from domestic wood
“For us at Ed. Züblin AG, the CARL timber hybrid high-rise is an internal teamwork project that allows us to contribute our broad range of expertise in different areas of building construction and structural engineering,” says the project’s senior site manager, Michael Jäger, from the Turnkey Construction Business Unit of ZÜBLIN Karlsruhe. The unit will be realising the construction project together with ZÜBLIN’s Structural Engineering Business Unit in Karlsruhe and a team of timber construction experts from ZÜBLIN Timber.

The use of the hybrid construction method results in a special feature during construction of the high-rise project. For structural reasons and fire protection, the foundations, basement, underground level and staircase are being built of reinforced concrete. As ZÜBLIN project manager Andre Essig explains, “The final height of the building will therefore become apparent relatively soon after start of the structural work, after only about three months.” The reason: Instead of being built floor by floor, as is usual in building construction, the first phase involves the construction of only the core of the staircase using slipform construction. The extensive timber construction work will begin after that. The construction elements, prefabricated from local timber at ZÜBLIN Timber in Aichach, will be completely assembled within a few months, between February and October 2022. The construction of the 14-storey building will include around 2,900 m² of LENO^® ceiling modules made of cross-laminated timber for wood-concrete composite ceilings, approx. 1,500 m² of timber-frame exterior walls with integrated supports made of beech, a façade formwork made of silver fir, and almost 1,000 m² of LENO^® partition walls made of cross-laminated timber and gypsum fibre boards.

Energy-efficient to KfW standard 55
The timber hybrid high-rise stands out as a particularly sustainable building, and not only because of the extensive use of wood as a climate-neutral building material. The construction method also ensures an especially effective thermal insulation: The new project from Baugenossenschaft Arlinger is certified energy-efficient to KfW Standard 55, which means it will only require 55 percent of the energy of a conventional building.

Further details on the CARL timber hybrid high-rise can be found in a video animation of the project  and at carl.arlinger.de.

Facts & Figures

ZÜBLIN ENTITIES:
ZÜBLIN Subdivision Karlsruhe, Business Units Turnkey Construction and Structural Engineering
ZÜBLIN Timber GmbH

CONTRACT VALUE:
€ 29.2 million

PROJECT SCHEDUL:
10/21–11/23

ARCHITECTS:
Peter W. Schmidt Architekten GmbH, Pforzheim

CLIENT:
Baugenossenschaft Arlinger eG, Pforzheim

THE PROJECT IN NUMBERS:
Gross floor area: 14,706 m²
Gross volume: 46,185 m³

PRESS RELEASE (PDF) ZÜBLIN starts construction work on CARL timber hybrid high-rise in Pforzheim