t-lab Wood Architecture and Wood Materials, Research Workshop Diemerstein
"beautiful. sustainable. together" - the leitmotif of the New European Bauhaus Initiative finds a concrete implementation in the construction and research project of a completely cycle-compatible planned hall in the middle of the Palatinate Forest. Students and researchers of the RPTU Kaiserslautern - Landau give a concrete answer to the question of how the building of the future can look like. Concrete-free, resource-efficient and reversibly constructed from hardwood and softwood.
Local
Germany
Palatinate Forest
It addresses urban-rural linkages
It refers to a physical transformation of the built environment (hard investment)
Yes
ERDF : European Regional Development Fund
The project has benefited from the LEADER program.
No
Yes
As a representative of an organization, in partnership with other organisations
Name of the organisation(s): t-lab, Wood Architecture and Wood Materials Type of organisation: University or another research institution First name of representative: Jürgen Last name of representative: Graf Gender: Male Nationality: Germany Function: Research Speaker Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Pfaffenbergstraße 95 Town: Kaiserslautern Postal code: 67663 Country: Germany Direct Tel:+49 1525 4264045 E-mail:juergen.graf@architektur.uni-kl.de Website:https://www.architektur.uni-kl.de/tlab/
The t-lab was founded in 2014 at the Department of Architecture of the RPTU Kaiserlautern - Landau. The t-lab is primarily run by the departments of Structures and Materials (Univ. Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jürgen Graf) and Building Construction I and Design (Univ.-Prof. Stephan Birk). It is equally committed to research and teaching. The interdisciplinary research aims to increase the timber construction quota, increase product storage and material substitution as well as establish the circular construction economy. The projects can be roughly divided into three thematic areas: Development of new building components and building elements in a circular construction economy, reduction of restrictions, and new typologies made of wood.
In an available area not far from the university, located in the middle of the Palatinate Forest, a test laboratory for innovative and experimental timber construction will now be built. In the future, the "t-lab Campus Diemerstein" will offer space for interdisciplinary timber construction research, and experimental and constructive teaching concepts with test buildings on a scale of 1:1, workshops, summer schools, and conferences.
A research workshop will kick of the new timber construction campus of the RPTU Kaiserslautern - Landau in the Diemerstein Valley. The building, which measures around 360 square meters, is being planned and built by researchers and students as a research-design-build project. It offers a flexibly usable area. Wood materials were used for the primary construction, the facade, and the finishing. The components are non-destructively deconstructible and thus reusable. The elements of the supporting structure, the envelope, and the technical finishing are layered in a cycle-oriented manner and can thus be read. The new building thus derives its architectural and constructive form from the conditions of origin of the demand for consistent recycling management of all building components, structural elements, and parts.
Circular economy
Reversibility
Wood Element Construction
Research-Design-Build
Bauwende
For the globally decisive climate pest, the construction sector, building in a circular economy will mean a significant reduction in gray emissions and resource consumption in the medium term. Essential requirements for all construction projects are waste avoidance, reuse, and flexibility of use. The research workshop Diemerstein demonstrates on a building scale that cycle-effective construction can be implemented in building practice using today's manufacturing technology. To this end, cycle-effective measures, i.e. elementation, standardization, and reversibility of components, were impressively demonstrated. The invention of the universally applicable cone dowel (Konusdübel), an innovative wood connection made of synthetic resin pressed wood (KP), makes it possible to deconstruct and reuse all structural elements of the hall even after decades of use. The overall goal is the change of coonstruction, replacing the unbridled consumption of resources with the controlled use of resources in the spirit of the circular economy. The innovative timber construction will be the spearhead of the building turnaround.
The research workshop Diemerstein thus covers the following sustainability goals of the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations (UN): High-quality education (SDG 4) through the consistent cycle-effective education of architecture students; Economic growth (SDG 8), which can only be climate-relevant and resource-efficient in the future; Industry; Innovation (SDG 9) in terms of the circular construction economy; Sustainable cities and communities (SDG 11), which must serve as pioneers of the building turnaround, to which we contribute with this pilot project; Sustainable production (SDG 12) through the research and invention of novel building components; Climate change mitigation measures (SDG 13) through the circular use of native building materials.
Buildings only become culturally relevant if they are of high architectural quality - a basic prerequisite for the Bauwende and thus for buildings constructed under the constraints of a cycle-effective construction method. Elementization, standardization an reversibility are to be applied in constructive clarity and architectural variety in such a way that aesthetically designed buildings of high quality are created. We have succeeded in this with the factory and research hall. The high-quality, reversible load-bearing structure expresses the fact that these circular requirements must not be understood as restrictions on design freedom, but that aesthetics and environmental protection are not contradictions per se.
The basic principles of planning as well as the design concept were developed with students in several joint courses of the departments of Building Construction and Design (Univ. Prof. Stephan Birk) and Structures and Materials (Univ.-Prof. Dr.-Ing. Jürgen Graf). The design features of reversible component connections are based on various research results from t-lab wood architecture and wood materials. For the first time, highly efficient ring nodes (Ringkeildübel) made of KP are used for the primary supporting structure, and conical dowels (Konusadapter) made of KP are used for the first time to connect the structural elements. Further integral planning down to the detailed scale is carried out by the two departments and their students as well as with the support of external partners. The structural implementation was carried out with students as well as with the participation of selected companies in a research-design-build project. In the future, the building industry will be determined by the next generation of architects and constructors. The study of architecture and engineering must therefore set the course for circularly effective building toward a building turnaround. Our Research-Design-Build project points the way forward.
The aim is to establish circularly effective construction in society as a major contribution to the Bauwende. The construction sector currently accounts for a large share of greenhouse gas emissions, primary energy, and raw material consumption, and waste generation worldwide. To change this, the circular economy must be established in the construction industry. The example of the research workshop is used to implement and test these principles in practice. Through the interaction of research and teaching, the issues and solution approach for circular construction with wood are directly worked on and internalized by students. The basic principles taught in teaching are intended to show future generations of architects and engineers a way to confidently implement the necessary resource-saving changes in the construction sector.
Acceptance in society and by citizens is necessary to carry a change of construction (Bauwende) across the board. To this end, circularly effective buildings must guarantee not only high aesthetics but also high quality of life. Involving the population is therefore very important to us. We have held information events, lectures, and guided tours with citizens and offer municipalities and investors a lively exchange of information.
Resource productivity must become a matter of course for clients, architects, engineers, and contractors. This means nothing less than a cultural change. To this end, politicians - federal, state, and local governments - must be called to account so that they can live up to their steering and exemplary function. The goal is a procurement practice that takes the entire life cycle of building products as its basis. This means that proof of a CO2-neutral overall balance of production, use, reuse, and sorted disposal in the biological and technical material cycle is demanded and rewarded for private and public construction projects.
The t-lab is an interdisciplinary network of architects and engineers. Using the example of the research workshop in Diemerstein, research was also conducted into how workflows and processes in the planning and construction of cycle-effective buildings made of reversible construction elements can be changed and optimized. Close cooperation between students, architects, engineers and construction companies was sought and successfully implemented. Circulation-compatible developments of building element assemblies, reversible connections, of a conduit run for electrical and water were jointly planned and implemented in terms of manufacturing technology. For example, the outer wall was divided into the following building element groups (from the outside to the inside): outer cladding, thermal insulation, load-bearing layer (also corresponds to inner cladding), and openly accessible installation layer. All building element groups are designed to be separately degradable and their reusability is proven.
Circular construction management only succeeds when planning and execution are interdisciplinary from the outset. The added value lies in a new "building culture" whose goal is the circular construction economy. Only through interdisciplinary research, planning, and implementation can long-established processes be overcome and new circular concepts be implemented on a broad scale.
The innovation consists of the built proof of a 100% degradable and reusable structure in timber construction. Easily detachable, reversible, and reusable connections and structural elements are the basis for this circularly effective construction method. Load-bearing reversible connections for the building industry are subject to complex component tests and approvals and, from an economic point of view, only make sense as standardized connection types. We have achieved this with the KP nodes and KP conical dowels (Konusdübel). Highly efficient KP ring nodes (Ringknoten) were used for the first time for the primary supporting structure of the research workshop. In combination with beech veneer laminated timber beams, they form the main supporting structure of the building. Large-format (2.50 m x 4-6 m) wall and ceiling panels made of cross-laminated timber were reversibly connected to the main supporting structure with KP cone dowels (Konusdübel). Insulation level and external cladding are reversible with simple positive connections. The floor slab is elevated in accordance with a crawl space basement design and reversibly bolted to steel substructures at a few points as a cross-laminated timber slab.
Synthetic resin pressed wood (KP) is a laminated beech veneer lumber strongly compressed under high temperature, impregnated, and consolidated with phenolic resin. The strengths as well as the elongation stiffness are higher than those of non-compacted laminated beech veneer lumber due to the fiber compaction, and thus also much higher than those of softwood. In the case of reversible and non-destructively detachable connections, force transmission must be possible at the serviceability limit state without plastic deformation of the composite partners and the fastener. This guarantees that no damage occurs in the joint area during the component service life. This condition is met with conical dowels.
The research workshop Diemerstein impressively demonstrates that the circular building economy can be implemented in an architecturally and constructively high-quality manner. Therefore, the building is not only for our students but also for municipalities, investors, and private builders the proof of the feasibility of the building turnaround. Numerous inquiries already received confirm this. Above all, the universally applicable cone dowels as a reversible connection between two building components or building elements can be used not only in hall construction but also in multi-story timber frame construction. This opens up a wide range of possibilities for circularly effective construction in the important, dense construction in urban contexts. The construction method with cone dowels is shown at youtube.com/@tlab_RPTU (cone adapter made of pressed resin wood).
Elementization, standardization, and reversibility as prerequisites for cycle-effective construction guided our actions. It was very quickly clear to the interdisciplinary planning team that reversible connections, in particular, have a decisive influence on circularity. Architecturally, the methodology of building element layering was averted. All building elements are connected in a degradable manner. Also decisive for an area-wide application of this connection technology is the simple and fast handling, a high load-bearing capacity as well as the economic efficiency and availability of the connections. We have realized these requirements with the methodology of positive locking and a special wood material - synthetic resin-pressed wood (KP). The conical dowels (Konusdübel) have about 10 times higher load-bearing capacity on shear compared to threaded bolts, correspondingly few conical dowels were required. For the production of the cone-shaped milled holes in the components to be connected, a cone cutter was specially developed which, compared to production with conventional finger cutters, enables a time advantage of a factor of 10 per milled hole. This leads to economical production with high construction accuracy. Our students, who supported the timber construction company during the construction, were thus able to produce the high load-bearing connection on the construction site without any problems using simple cordless screwdrivers.
With the research workshop, built 100% cycle-effectively with students, among others, we have demonstrated that the global demand for cycle-compatible architecture and construction can be implemented. The workshop demonstrates on a building scale that deconstruction and reuse of building elements are possible with the interdisciplinary cooperation of all parties involved in the construction as well as the implementation of state-of-the-art CNC technology. The scaling of hall buildings to urban structures is also possible. Therefore, the cycle-effective construction principle of the factory and research hall points the way for subsequent cycle-compatible construction.
The shell of the research workshop has been completed. Only the openly laid interior fittings - electrical and water - still have to be built by our students themselves. The shell of the building was completed within a week, and all reversible connections were made with a perfect fit. To ensure this, a test axis was erected on a building scale with the help of the students in the workshop of the wood construction company carrying out the work. After a successful test run, the axis was dismantled, transported to the construction site, and rebuilt without any loss of value or additional measures.
Circular effective construction is not yet established in the building industry. Pilot projects such as the research workshop Diemerstein are therefore of great relevance, especially because this construction method serves as an integral part of architectural education at the RPTU Kaiserslautern - Landau. The successful implementation demonstrates to building decision-makers that climate-relevant and resource-saving construction methods are constructively and economically possible since the manufacturing technologies available to us today are sufficient for this. The initiated innovation push from artificial intelligence, robotics, and advancing CNC technology, will open up the construction industry shortly even more easily and comprehensively for climate-effective construction. Therefore, the architectural design and construction techniques for the circular construction industry need to be developed today. The factory and research hall is the forerunner of this technology push.
