How can complex building envelopes be realised in globalised markets in a high-quality, economical and timely manner?
Internationally experienced architects and facade planners will answer these and other questions on March 25, 2021 starting at 4 PM (CET) at the "2nd International NEXT Facade Summit" at the NEXT Studio by WICONA + Partners in Frankfurt. There will again be a live stream for the English-language event.
Building envelopes in a global context
The 2nd edition of the "International NEXT Facade Summit" will also be held under the motto "Think Globally, Build Locally". As with the successful premiere in December 2020, leading minds from globally active planning and architecture firms will provide personal insights into their work and highlight the challenges of planning and construction processes in different countries based on best practice projects. Dr. Werner Jager, Managing Director at WICONA, will be the moderator.
Spectacular projects by leading international planning and architectural firms
Kai-Uwe Bergmann from the BIG Bjarke Ingels Group (New York) will be kicking things off. The projects from the office founded in 2006 by the young architect Bjarke Ingels inspire above all with their unusual architecture and fresh, bold concepts. As lead architect and partner of BIG, Kai-Uwe Bergmann will present "The Smile", realized in New York's East Harlem district, and provide insights into the design process. Inspired by the surface of the moon and the cultural influences of the neighborhood, the T-shaped building blends perfectly with the surrounding red and brown brick buildings. The interlocking, checkerboard facade panels were manufactured by POHL Facade Division - partners in the NEXT Studio. He will also present the "Oceanix City" planned as part of the UN-Habitat New Urban Agenda - a uniquely futuristic city on water.
The next speaker - Architect Peter Olbert - works at the Hamburg office from Hadi Teherani Architects. The world-renowned office stands for architecture that combines holistic, urban ambition and high-quality design. This can be seen, for example, in the "Mercator One" commercial building in the heart of Duisburg - here, the particularly environmentally friendly Hydro CIRCAL aluminum alloy from WICONA was used. Concrete projects from Peter Olbert's lecture will be the planning of the innovative commercial and residential high-rise "Deutschlandhaus" in Hamburg as well as the 32-storey high-rise "The Spin" in Frankfurt/Main.
Sauerbruch Hutton (Berlin) is also represented. The multi-award-winning architectural practice continues to inspire worldwide through its joy in the sensual use of space and materials, its curiosity for technical and spatial innovation, and its responsible use of resources. As a partner and managing director, Juan Lucas Young will present in his lecture, among other things, the "Stockholm One", which was built in the ecological Stockholm district Hammarby Sjöstad. The tower, which was designed as a downward tapering star, stands out as a landmark that can be seen from afar. In addition, the architect outlines the equally impressive building projects "Ernst & Young Head Office" (Luxembourg) and "Experimenta". The Science Center is conceived as a spatial spiral whose choreography on its ascending path stages differentiated spatial sequences and targeted views of the surrounding urban landscape.
Finally, Agnes Koltay (Koltay Facades) will describe her diverse project experiences from around the world. The planning and engineering firm, with offices in Dubai and Singapore, stands for the combination of architectural understanding and technical expertise and has been involved in numerous outstanding building envelopes in Asia and Europe. For example, Agnes Koltay was involved in the realization of numerous high-tech towers around the Burj Khalifa and the Business Bay in Dubai - from the Sky View to the Fountainviews and the Burj Vista.
