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Construction of a new research facility for the Helmholtz Centre Berlin, located in Adlershof.

Construction Underway for Adaptable Research Facility at Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin, Adlershof; Catering to Changing Scientific Teams.

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State-of-the-art laboratory and administrative facility unveiled at Helmholtz Centre Berlin's...
State-of-the-art laboratory and administrative facility unveiled at Helmholtz Centre Berlin's Adlershof location

Construction of a new research facility for the Helmholtz Centre Berlin, located in Adlershof.

Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin Constructs New Flexibility Building for Energy Research

The Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin is building a new flexibility building in Berlin-Adlershof, designed for changing research teams and collaborative working methods. The centre, renowned for its work in energy sciences, is constructing this new building near its electron storage ring, BESSY II, which it uses for the analysis of physical and chemical processes down to the atomic level.

No publicly available information was found regarding the architecture firm responsible for planning the new building. However, the building ensemble's arrangement has been praised for its urban and functional quality, with the design based on a concept of three or four building bodies positioned as independent "erratics". The Stuttgart-based architectural firm h4a Gessert + Randecker Generalplaner Architektenbüro has been commissioned for the planning of the building ensemble.

The new building will provide space for around 270 employees who will be working in fundamental research on innovative energy technologies. It will have approximately 3,800 square meters of laboratory space and 3,100 square meters of office space. The facade of the building is a double-shell structure with a front textile membrane, serving as heat protection in summer and a heat buffer in winter. The textile fabric allows for high daylight ingress and reduces nitrogen oxides through a photocatalytic coating.

Roof areas of the new building are designed as terraces in some sections, and greened zones promote relaxation. A publicly accessible plaza is being created in front of the main entrance of the new building, serving as an entrance area, meeting point, or place to stay. The plaza, along with the building's straight facades that align with the grid of the plot boundaries, blends harmoniously into the surrounding campus structure.

The landscape architectural design of the new building supports the idea of an open, lively, and networked campus. The building ensemble's arrangement strengthens the connection to the rest of the campus and the Magnusstraße. The Helmholtz Center Berlin stands for sustainability, diversity, and excellent research, with the aim of actively shaping the transition to a climate-neutral society. The center develops materials and technologies for a CO2-neutral energy supply and focuses on future topics such as solar cells, battery storage, and hydrogen production.

Sources for the images in this article are Leaflet, CARTO, CC BY 3.0 OpenStreetMap, Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin, h4a-architekten, and Eller & Eller Architekten.

Images:

  1. Leaflet, CARTO, CC BY 3.0 OpenStreetMap - Map showing the location of the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin in Berlin-Adlershof.
  2. Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin - Rendering of the new flexibility building.
  3. h4a-architekten - Detailed rendering of the facade of the new building.
  4. Eller & Eller Architekten - Rendering showing the plaza in front of the main entrance of the new building.

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