Plans for the construction of a multi-story wooden house had been in the works for a long time, but implementation was to take until 2019. In the meantime, the building project called Skaio is considered a showcase concept and has long since found imitators.
In 2013, the DGNB and the Stiftung Deutscher Nachhaltigkeitspreis e. V. (German Sustainability Award Foundation) launched a very special award for environmentally conscious building: the German Sustainability Award for Architecture. It is considered a leader in the sustainable building segment. The next award ceremony will take place on December 4. One of the three finalists is Skaio, the tallest wooden house in Germany.
Skaio is a real showcase project
It stands in Heilbronn and has done so since 2019, when it was part of the Federal Horticultural Show, a model project in the city and garden exhibition. Before construction began, people discussed the central question of how urban life can take place and how living spaces can be developed close to the city but still close to nature. Skaio was created as an answer to this question. The land for the building was acquired at the municipal level in Heilbronn as early as 2005. 25 hectares of derelict railroad land seemed ideal for the successful implementation of future residential projects. First, however, the Federal Garden Show had to be planned. Subsequently, a promising urban quarter was to be created on this very site, in which living and recreation, leisure and relaxation were to be closely interlinked. Those responsible demanded that the architecture should not only be sustainable, but should also have a genuinely unusual structure in purely visual terms, in order to permanently enhance the plain site.
A concept with a great sense of community
The architectural office headed by Markus Langer has already received the DGNB Diamond Award for the conception of the huge wooden house in a modern design with large glass surfaces and a greened outdoor area. The reason was in particular the design quality. The building also received a gold certificate. It’s no wonder that many reports and features have been shot around the house since it was built. Incidentally, it has by no means stood empty since its construction. It is enjoying growing popularity among its residents, who enjoy the high level of living comfort combined with its unique location. The residents are deliberately diverse. There are housing units suitable for the disabled and the elderly, as well as special support programs for people with low incomes or Hartz4. Living and relaxing in Skaio should be for all classes, all age groups and above all: all together!
Skaio as a model for the future
In addition to the sense of community, Skaio made it clear that sustainable construction is not wishful thinking, even on a large scale, but can already be realized now. The main structure is made of wood, a renewable resource. And yet the building meets all safety standards, just like the reinforced concrete variants. Up to now, wood has been used to construct mainly small buildings, but here we are dealing with a high-rise building, or to be more precise, the tallest wooden building in Germany. Exciting that this concept works so flawlessly and sends a signal for architects to take a look at Heilbronn and gather inspiration.
They seem to be doing just that, because the next tall wooden house is currently being built in Hamburg. It will even be a bit taller than the famous Skaio example. But the builders don’t mind losing the title of “tallest wooden house”. They are simply pleased that there are imitators who make environmentally friendly construction the focus of their considerations. It is also time for a rethinking and further development in this sector, because still most developers do not use renewable raw materials and also not such, which could be recycled. It is not for nothing that the sector is considered to be very harmful to the environment and this must definitely improve. Why not with large wooden houses that give more and more residents a nice place to live?
Image copyright: jukai5
