Publications

On this page you will find a selection of publications written by our colleagues – which can be downloaded here free of charge.

FOUR Frankfurt – New Skyscraper in Frankfurt/Main

A detailed report in Beton- und Stahlbetonbau with the participation of our Frankfurt office manager Daniel Torakai deals with the major FOUR project in Frankfurt.

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The Montblanc Haus Hamburg – Relief Facade Made of Exposed Concrete

The complex facade of the building was planned and constructed within a very short space of time. For this, the limits of what was possible were fully utilised from a structural planning, design and execution point of view. The special solutions developed for the Montblanc facade are described in an article by our colleague Robert Bode in the journal Beton- und Stahlbetonbau

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Selected Research Work of the ILEK

In the second part of the article “Lightweight construction with concrete”, the focus is on lightweight structural construction. Prof. Lucio Blandini and his colleagues discuss design and manufacturing approaches at the ILEK for the development of resource-efficient, sustainable concrete structures

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Planning Bridges with BIM

A worthwhile article by our Berlin colleague Andreas Malcher in the magazine Bautechnik is dedicated to BIM planning in bridge construction

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Stefanie Weidner und Vanessa Propach in Beton- und Stahlbetonbau

Resource Conservation Must be Controlled in a Binding Manner

When it comes to the consumption of global resources, the construction sector is at the top of the list. In a multi-page article, our sustainability experts Vanessa Propach and Stefanie Weidner address this problem in detail and call for the overdue introduction of a binding building resource passport

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Revitalisation Projects - Why Taking Stock is So Important

The decision not to build a new building and to extend the service life of existing buildings represents an important contribution to sustainability in the building industry. However, the conversion of existing buildings is not always easy to plan and can involve various difficulties. In his article, Bernd Glückert explains why a careful inventory is essential before planning begins – and how best to protect oneself from unpleasant surprises

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Beton- und Stahlbetonbau Stefanie Weidner und Roland Bechmann

Refurbishment, Reuse of Components and Gradient Concrete

Large quantities of greenhouse gases are released during the construction, operation and demolition of buildings. Especially when concrete is used as a building material.

In their article, Stefanie Weidner and Roland Bechmann show how these emissions can be reduced with the techniques and tools available today

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Leichtbau Mit Beton Lucio Blandini Beton Und Stahlbetonbau 5 2023

Lightweight Construction with Concrete

Prof. Lucio Blandini, CEO of Werner Sobek AG and head of ILEK (Institut für Leichtbau Enwerfen und Konstruieren – Institute for Lightweight Design and Construction), explains together with some of his colleagues why lightweight construction is also possible with concrete

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Stuttgart21 Chalice Supports Lust auf Gut

Gradient Concrete for the Construction of the Future

The building industry faces the challenge of adapting planning methods, material extraction, building material and component production as well as construction processes in such a way that the necessary reductions in CO₂ emissions, material consumption, etc. can be achieved

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The Facade as a Vertical Green Space

In a publication by the Augsburg University of Applied Sciences, our colleagues Carmen Herrmann, Florian Starz and Timo Schmidt look at the potential of green façades. As an example, they look at the façades planned by Werner Sobek for the projects KII in Düsseldorf and Calwer Passage in Stuttgart

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Resource Efficiency through Digitalisation

In a brochure published by the VDI, our colleagues Agatha Braun, Dominga Garufi and Stefanie Weidner explain why the course for the most efficient use of natural resources is set at the very beginning of the planning process – and how the planning process can be optimised with the help of BIM

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The Building as a Supplier of Raw Materials

At the end of January 2023, intelligent bauen now published an interview with Claudia Lüling, in which the architect goes into detail about a new culture of building in the age of climate change

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How to Build for More Climate Protection

Our board member Roland Bechmann and Stefanie Weidner, office manager of Werner Sobek Copenhagen, answer these questions in Volume 1 “Sustainable Building with Concrete” of the current DBV issue

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Greenhouse Gas Budgets for the Building Industry - the Viennese Special Way

In a very descriptive article, our colleague Dr. Frederic Waimer, office manager of Werner Sobek Vienna, reports on the greenhouse gas budget and its consequences for the building industry. His focus here is on Austria and in particular the capital of our neighbouring country

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We need a paradigm shift

In an interview entitled “Building for the grandchildren”, Werner Sobek describes the gradient concrete he developed as one of his major research successes. In view of the rapidly progressing climate change, he calls on politics, the media and science to educate people more clearly and understandably

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Resource Minimisation in the Urban Context

Although the resources that can be used by humanity are in fact limited, their consumption continues to increase every year. One of the main drivers of resource consumption is construction.

In a recent study published in Mauerwerk, single-family houses, multi-family houses and 20- and 40-storey high-rise residential buildings are analysed in terms of their resource consumption under certain parameters

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Emissions and Resource Consumption - the Role of the Building Industry

The building sector is a major cause of rising resource consumption and climate-damaging emissions. The legal requirements to curb this trend are so far (Europe-wide) completely insufficient if we really want to achieve the goals defined in the Paris Climate Agreement.

Our colleague Roland Bechmann explains in the latest issue of the magazine “nbau” how planners and builders can already achieve substantial savings in emissions and resource consumption today – even without corresponding requirements from politics

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S-Bahn Crossing in the New Stuttgart Station

The S-Bahn crossing in Stuttgart’s new underground railway station spans a lower existing tunnel that runs at right angles to the new tracks. The bridge structure rests on bored pile walls, with chalice supports with shell roofs forming the upper end. Due to the enormous load-bearing capacity of the structure and its limited accessibility during operation, the planners had to introduce various technical innovations to make the project feasible.

A detailed documentation of this demanding project has now been published in the magazine “Bautechnik”

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Building in the Future - An Essay by Werner Sobek

New paths, courageous decisions & responsible action. In the current issue of “nbau Nachhaltig Bauen”, Werner Sobek comments on building in the future: the building industry must break new ground by using less material and using recyclable building materials as well as increasing the use of secondary building materials. This is the only way to master the tasks ahead

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Documentation on the World's First Adaptive High-Rise Building Now Available Online

D1244 is an experimental platform of the Collaborative Research Centre SFB 1244. The 36.5 m high building is the first adaptive high-rise building in the world. Our company was responsible for the structural and general planning of this exciting project. The magazine “Bautechnik” has now published a detailed documentation of the project, in which our CEO Lucio Blandini and our company founder Werner Sobek were involved, among others

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R128 Werner Sobek Sustainable Engineering and Design

"We have to Stop demonizing Concrete" - Werner Sobek interviewed by the WELT

The construction industry is facing radical upheavals: A conversation with Prof. Werner Sobek about scarce raw materials, unnecessary emissions and about timber as a building material – by Marcus Woeller

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Ribbon in the Green – The Rosenau Cycle Path Bridge in Fulda

The construction of a new bike path bridge in the Auenpark of the city of Fulda is the centerpiece of a new walking and biking concept. The bridge creates a direct connection between the surrounding districts and the city center of Fulda and bundles the Hessian long-distance cycle paths R1, R2 and R3. A wooden bridge built 25 years ago in the immediate vicinity can now be converted into a pedestrian-only bridge. This allows for better separation of traffic flows and increases traffic safety. The design envisioned a wide span, elegantly recessed ribbon that blends into the floodplain landscape with slight arches

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Greening of buildings and outdoor systems toimprove the microclimate

In Our Sights: Green Facades

Extensive forms of greening lead to a considerable improvement in summer thermal insulation, biodiversity and air quality. An article by our colleagues Moritz Brombacher and Marc-Steffen Fahrion in the journal “Bauphysik” examines how the positive effects of greening outdoor areas and buildings also affect the interior of heavily insulated buildings

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Phase 0: How Planners Can Reduce the CO₂ Emissions of Their Buildings from the Very Beginning

The CTBUH (Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat) is a global initiative dealing with all aspects of high-rise construction. In the latest issue of the CTBUH Journal, our colleagues Roland Bechmann and Stefanie Weidner published an article that is worth reading and which we make available for download here: “Reducing the Carbon Emissions of High-Rise Buildings Structures from the Very Beginning“

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Architecture as a Climate Killer?

In an article for the journal “Beton- und Stahlbetonbau” (Concrete and Reinforced Concrete Construction), our colleagues Stefanie Weidner, Alexandra Mrzigod, Roland Bechmann and Werner Sobek deal with the climate-damaging emissions caused by our built environment. Their contribution entitled “Grey emissions in the building sector – stocktaking and optimisation strategies” summarises the most important results in this area – and at the same time also shows ways in which we can reduce these emissions as simply and quickly as possible

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Dreaming of Utopias

“Architecture has many forms, but it is always forward-looking” – says Prof. Werner Sobek in the current editorial of the Italian architecture magazine “The Plan”, issue 8. Under the title “Dare to dream of utopias”, he comments on the built environment of the future and the important role architects and engineers play in it

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Zitat Digitalisierung und Dekarbonisierung Eng

Building Information Modeling

Our office was represented with two articles in the 2019 BIM issue, which appeared at the end of last year: Roland Bechmann and Steffen Feirabend wrote the editorial, which was entitled “Digitalisation as the key to greater sustainability”. In addition, an article by Lucio Blandini was dedicated to the question of what the digital revolution means for the education of students in civil engineering

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The new Main Station Stuttgart

As part of the Stuttgart-Ulm railway project, the existing Stuttgart terminus station is being converted into an underground through station. The main design element of the new platform hall are the so-called goblet supports

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Kuwait International Airport

Dr Lucio Blandini, Guido Nieri, and Werner Sobek are the authors of a noteworthy article on the new terminal building currently being erected at Kuwait International Airport. The article was published in the March 2019 edition of the German magazine “Stahlbau”. It describes how the terminal’s sophisitcated design developed by Foster + Partners was rendered buildable with the help of complex digital methods and tools

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Active Hospital – Modernization Strategy for a Climate-Neutral Hospital Area

The “Waldkliniken” in Eisenberg, Thuringia, are the first hospital to aim to make their existing buildings and the planned new buildings climate-neutral in the near future through the addition of renewable energies and intelligent consumption control, thus meeting the Active House standard developed by Werner Sobek for an entire hospital site.

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Publications