Civil Construction

Civil construction and Infrastructur

A new experimental hall, about 600 metres long, will be built for PETRA IV. At the same time, several existing buildings have to be renovated. An important component of sustainable construction is the optimisation of the resources used in civil engineering. DESY uses the German government's "Sustainable Building" assessment system and has developed its own guidelines. The guidelines include the use of waste heat, protection against overheating in summer, rainwater management - a particular challenge on a high-density campus - and greening of the facades.

An inconspicuous hall, greened with many plants on the façade and roof — The greened Hall 36 on the DESY campus: this is where the Technical University of Berlin is conducting research as part of the ‘Energy-efficient building cooling’ project. © DESY

DESY's planning objective is to provide highly attractive areas for cutting-edge research and to pursue a strategy that is as sustainable as possible. The experience gained with large-scale greening will be incorporated into further planning on the campus of the two DESY sites. This is because both in Hamburg and in Zeuthen a wide range of requirements have to be met. In addition to the technical requirements, open space design and closeness to nature also play a role. These factors should be considered in terms of sustainability. Rainwater infiltration and biodiversity are just as important as quality of stay and bicycle parking spaces.

Tobias Piekatz, Campus Development Project Coordinator at DESY, gives an insight into his day-to-day work and reports on difficulties and successful projects.

Interview with Tobias Piekatz

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