Modular Construction at FOUR Frankfurt
With Dennis Maier at the construction site of the FOUR Frankfurt
It’s no longer a secret that Frankfurt’s importance and function do not correspond to its size. Residents call it the smallest big city in the world. Space is in much shorter supply than in other metropolises due to the natural and deliberately maintained boundaries of the so called Grüngürtel. As a result, the city grows primarily upward. This has advantages: Almost all destinations here can be reached easily on foot.
However, when building new projects such as the FOUR Frankfurt high-rise ensemble, factors such as narrow traffic routes and a lack of space on the construction site make smooth construction progress difficult. This makes precise preliminary planning all the more important. In the field of technical building equipment (TGA), prefabricated modular solutions are an option here. This was also the case with the FOUR Frankfurt project. The large-scale project was planned and thought through completely digitally at an early stage. Although this means that planning takes a little more time than with conventionally constructed buildings, the construction time and the scope of construction risks are significantly reduced. In particular, a Building Information Modeling (BIM)-supported planning method facilitates the cooperation of all parties involved in the construction.
“With the FOUR Frankfurt, the modular construction method was consistently relied on from the very beginning. Only in this way is it now possible to implement a project of this magnitude with this efficiency and precision.”
– Dennis Maier
Würth was commissioned to equip the building services modules for all four towers at FOUR Frankfurt. These modules contain various elements of the technical building equipment, such as heating, air conditioning and electrical engineering. All components are demountable and can be produced in the hall regardless of weather and location. The technical elaboration for the fastening solutions in the respective floors was carried out completely with BIM. This ensured close communication with the other trades involved in the construction site. The production and pre-assembly of the TGA modules took place at the Würth production facility in Waldenburg.
A special feature of these modules is the barcode on the component. This allows access to the complete production documentation, and all important information is available at the click of a mouse. This digital memory is also a prerequisite for greater sustainability. At the end of the building’s useful life, the modules can be removed and reused. The principle of circular value creation is based on the cradle to cradle principle. It aims to create products in recurring cycles.
The TGA modules ready for installation
The modules mounted on the ceiling
In contrast to supplying the construction site with various individual parts, the delivery of prefabricated modules is also significantly more sustainable logistically. The TGA modules are delivered in reusable transport racks directly to the installation site on the FOUR construction site and only require final assembly there. The transport racks are picked up again by the Würth transport logistics provider with the next delivery and used for new modules.
The precisely timed delivery avoids having to temporarily store the components at the construction site for long periods. As a result, the construction site is tidier and better organized. In addition, the use of modular prefabricated components significantly shortens construction processes. Within just two days, all thirty modules per floor are fully installed in the high-rise towers without the need for any major tools.
To ensure that everything runs smoothly, Dennis Maier is regularly on site as Würth‘s overall project manager. For him, the consistent use of modular construction processes at FOUR Frankfurt is the necessary basis for the success of this major project. Only in this way is it logistically possible to realize a construction project of this size in such a short time at such a tight location.
More about FOUR Frankfurt
On the former Deutsche Bank site, four high-rise towers are currently rising in the form of FOUR Frankfurt in the middle of Frankfurt. The new urban quarter in the banking district consists of two residential towers and two office towers. There will also be space for restaurants and retail outlets.
The 233-meter T1 main tower, which will be the city’s third-highest skyscraper, gives the project special architectural significance. The other towers will be 173 meters, 120 meters and 100 meters high. The project developer Groß & Partner consistently relied on the modular construction method from the outset in the planning and realization of FOUR Frankfurt and is now benefiting from the high speed and logistical parkticability on the construction site.
