How did the idea of building a new residential neighbourhood above the street?
Schmid: Let's take a look at the streets. Tarmac everywhere seals urban areas. They are lost for housing construction. At the same time, there is a lack of living space and building land is scarce. So why not combine the two? There are many kilometres of kilometres of road that are suitable for overbuilding. With our pilot project we want to show that this is feasible and sustainable.
What inspired you and what characterises the new building?
Schmid: I was looking at motorway service stations on roads and wondered motorway service areas and asked myself whether the procedural and building could not also be used for building in the airspace above the space above the road. Seven years ago, I drew a first sketch was drawn seven years ago and the then Lord Mayor of Düsseldorf was enthusiastic about the idea. The city took action and proposed a section of road for a superstructure. From The concrete project then emerged from a feasibility study. The special thing about it is that we are not just planning a 300 metre 300 metre-long residential quarter above a motorway, building with prefabricated modules and self-sufficient supplies. and self-sufficient supply.
Liebert: This is truly visionary, and we need visionaries who have the courage to break new ground. Sustainability, the circular economy and the careful use of resources are becoming increasingly important. This is where we, as TGA engineers develop new solutions. What I find particularly exciting is the scalability of the project. Residential neighbourhoods above a street could be standardised according to the Düsseldorf model and be standardised and reproduced everywhere. But not every location has the not every location has the right supply from the outset. That's why the idea to make the pilot project self-sufficient is particularly forward-looking. With self-sufficient buildings, we can also do a lot for sustainability. sustainability. Projecting self-sufficiency onto housing on a large scale I think that's absolutely important for the future.
Ballmer: Yes, we need more innovation in housing construction. But the project could also provide food for thought in road construction. provide food for thought. For example, when building roads, you could include the superstructure and prepare the foundations. I I think it's amazing that this idea is bringing new buildings buildings in the cities without having to seal off areas and create urgently needed living space at the same time. at the same time.
Modular construction offers advantages and challenges. How do you deal with them?
Schmid: It's no exaggeration to say that we want to turn the housing turn the housing industry inside out. If it were up to me if it were up to me, I would build flats like cars, on a production production line or on an assembly line. That reduces errors, massively improves quality and speeds up the construction time. And automated and standardised prefabrication brings cost benefits anyway. standardised prefabrication anyway. Assembling the modules above a busy over a busy road is of course more demanding than on a site with all-round security. That's why we have to site equipment and the assembly process closely. assembly process. We also want to offer not just one module, but a modular system that allows users to customise their homes. users can customise their flats. To do this, we have to all prefabricated components from production, transport and assembly through to operation. In total there will probably be nine or ten different cell elements. These can be configured in such a way that flats from 30 to 140 square metres can be put together. Here TGA plays a decisive role.
Liebert: Absolutely! We design new solutions for a highly highly complex and multiflexible modular system. Every cell must be an all-rounder. We have to ensure that every unit is unit is perfectly equipped technically. The transfer points of all lines such as heat, air conditioning, electricity, underfloor heating, cooling and also the supply shafts must interlock seamlessly, regardless of seamlessly, regardless of how the cells are later assembled. are later assembled. This is particularly challenging with water-bearing pipes. In addition to accuracy of fit and tightness they must also function perfectly hydraulically. If a cell is rotated cell by 90 or 180 degrees because a different room format is required format is required, we have to plan for these possibilities from the outset. planned in from the outset.
"We want to turn the housing industry inside out." Frank Michael Schmid, Dipl.-Kfm.
What does it mean to operate a building self-sufficiently in terms of energy and where are new solutions needed?
Liebert: TGA already offers us many possibilities today. We can utilise sun, wind, geothermal energy, waste heat, biomass and much more on site. A residential neighbourhood can already be completely independent of fossil fuels such as oil or gas. or gas. The situation is different when it comes to drinking water. We think far too little about our basic foodstuff. We always get it from the same tap and waste it on all sorts of things. Yet drinking water is already scarce and regulated in other parts of the world. Self-sufficiency means that we introduce water management in housing construction with different pipe systems and water and water circuits, various collection and treatment systems and tank systems. and tank systems. In a housing estate, a good 60 to 80 per cent of the drinking water consumed can be treated and reused. This possibility should be utilised. be utilised. The technical solutions are available. However they still need to be adapted to the requirements of residential residential buildings. For the industry This should soon be an interesting sales market for the industry.
Ballmer: Yes, the importance of self-sufficiently operated buildings will increase. We always check what a building needs and and what sources are available. If there is no drinking water If there is no drinking water pipe on the property, we look other options such as well water or rainwater. But sources that normally cause losses can also be utilised, can also be utilised. Waste water can be treated and reused as drinking or process water. The systems that are used on cruise ships could be further developed could be further developed for housing construction, for example. Overall, self-sufficiency is a major advantage for the scalability of the pilot project. of the pilot project.
Schmid: I agree with that. The combination of self-sufficiency and scalability is very promising. We are already being approached by technology providers from the circular economy. If they contribute new technical solutions, they will become part of our ecosystem and then the engineering pays off.
Liebert: Hotels are also asking how they can reduce their high water consumption and what can be technically retrofitted. can be retrofitted. However, these systems do not yet exist, although they are physically feasible. We expect this to become an interesting market.
Self-sufficiency does not come for free. How does the concept pay off for the residents?
Liebert: Clearly, a flat and the ancillary costs must be calculable. With renewable energies and self-sufficient systems, we can basically rule out price hikes like those for electricity and gas.
Schmid: We are striving for a community in the neighbourhood that benefits from digital possibilities. Technologies such as smart metering, IoT and the digital twin will help to optimise consumption and reduce consumption costs. Interestingly, residents will even be able to control the costs of their living space. This is because there will be usable space in the neighbourhood that can be booked as required. For example, not everyone needs a study or a guest room every day. A spacious kitchen is also not a must, but sometimes a welcome option. We are therefore pursuing a completely different rental model. With flat-rate prices and pay-as-you-use offers, residents enjoy maximum convenience while keeping their rental costs under control. And how does the project pay off for you as an investor? Schmid: The comparatively high development costs pay off for us primarily through the scaling perspective. In addition, we are not only the investor and developer, but also the operator. We will promote the idea of community and the personal responsibility of the tenants and secure the ecosystem as a whole in the long term. It will take a while before the result meets our own high standards. But over time, we want to move from innovation leadership to cost leadership.
When will the flats be ready for occupancy?
Schmid: I assume that planning permission will be granted by the end of 2025 or early 2026. The first construction project will certainly take longer than subsequent projects. For Düsseldorf, we anticipate a construction period of 15 to 18 months. If everything goes well, we could open the new residential neighbourhood in 2027. For follow-up projects, we will hopefully no longer need planning permission because we are aiming for type approval, as we know it from cars. That's why it's important to have experts like LIEBERT on board. With type approval, we have a duty to prove that we deliver the defined performance standard. And for that we need the expertise of the engineers. Liebert: I'm already looking forward to the construction and hopefully many more projects worldwide. And I am confident that we will be able to maintain the planned self-sufficiency. We will set new standards with innovative water management.
"We need visionaries who have the courage to break new ground." Thomas Liebert, Dipl.-Ing. (FH)
You are linked by a visionary project. What do you value about the collaboration?
Schmid: The engineering firm Liebert is a real technology partner for us, proposing surprising solutions and decisively driving the pilot project forward. Liebert's planning work with digital models is also forward-looking. And I appreciate the many smart questions. It helps us a lot to be critically scrutinised. The collaboration is also very pleasant and always respectful. That's important to me. We are two partners on an equal footing and support each other on a common path.
Ballmer: Exactly, it's simply fun to work together. And the Düsseldorf pilot project has a real wow effect for us. We can feel in our day-to-day work that this visionary project is inspiring and energising. We have a customer here who doesn't want to build zero-eight-fifteen. One that approaches us with completely different requirements. This demands maximum flexibility in our thinking. It's not always easy, but it motivates us immensely and also makes us interesting as an employer.
Liebert: It's been exciting to work on this visionary project right from the start. Our customer relationship is, if I may say so, a partnership of equals. I really appreciate Mr Schmid because he lives his vision and innovation. He is prepared to take risks and to do some rocky pioneering work. Standing by his side here as an innovation partner is very valuable and highly interesting for me personally and for LIEBERT. And that's exactly what we enjoy doing.
Schmid: Yes, I can only agree with that. The collaboration is an enrichment for both companies and is a great pleasure. I couldn't wish for a better business relationship.
