Sustainability is becoming an increasingly important topic not only in society, but also in the real estate industry. The German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB) has been awarding certificates for many years as one of various providers that are intended to confirm sustainable development in the real estate sector. As a rule, these green building certificates are awarded for new buildings or renovations. But in the current case this is different.

For the first time in its history, the DGNB is awarding a dismantling certificate – to the FOUR high-rise quartet in Frankfurt. The certification was presented yesterday as part of a hybrid event on the subject of “Urban Mining – Dismantling Practice Today” by DGNB President Amandus Sattler and DGNB Board Member Dr. Christine Lemaitre digitally presented it to Peter Matteo, Managing Partner of Groß & Partner.

The four high-rise buildings currently being built by the Frankfurt project developer on the area between Neue Schlesingergasse, Große Gallusstrasse and Junghofstrasse are not only the first construction project to use the DGNB “Vertical City” usage profile, but also the complete dismantling process is certified. The demolition work took place in 2018 and initially provided for the gutting of the existing buildings. The buildings with a total of 340,000 cubic meters of enclosed space, including the 96-meter high-rise in Große Gallusstrasse, were then conventionally removed.

“The DGNB criteria are strict – but we adhered to all the requirements throughout the entire demolition,” says managing director Peter Matteo, summarizing the successful cooperation with the subcontractor AWR Abbruch. “The FOUR is setting new impulses in the area of ​​sustainability and focusing on the careful use of resources from the first construction step.”

This also corresponds to the objective of the dismantling certificate of the DGNB, which makes an important contribution to the more responsible use of resources in the construction and real estate industry. The main aim is to bring building materials into a cycle, to support recycling, and to reduce the masses to be disposed of.

Various measures have to be taken to meet these criteria. For example, Groß & Partner had the windows and the listed facade on the site professionally expanded and stored so that they could be recycled for the new building. In addition, Groß & Partner implemented professional construction site communication, which is always available if you have any questions and which provides regular information on all processes on the construction site.

“Transparency is a decisive factor for us,” says managing director Peter Matteo. Johanna Kübchen, who is responsible for the cooperation with the DGNB, adds: “This applies not only to the outside but also to the inside: During the dismantling, we recorded all material flows and, together with AWR Abbruch, constantly considered how we could improve the recycling of the existing materials and be able to optimize the associated transport routes. ”All in all, the high-rise ensemble FOUR alone represents a real challenge for every project developer. The additional development of a holistic, sustainable demolition process is all the more important. But, as Matteo emphasizes: “To be a pioneer is what we expect from us and all of our projects.”