Probably the SMARTest address in Germany

EDGE Grand Central

Berlin, Germany

EDGE Grand Central is a nine-storey, multi-tenant development offering about 22,800m² of prime office space, a restaurants and fitness facilites. Located in Berlin’s newest urban quarter, Europacity, the building reached completion in 2021.

The Berlin Mix (Berliner Mischung), the city’s typical development form with a mixture of housing and commerce, was devised in the 1860s by Prussian Urban Planner James Hobrecht. It is an adaptable and flexible system of mixed-use buildings with shared courtyards housing small workshops, independent shops and residential units of different sizes.

Europacity, 61 hectares (610,000m²) of land next to the primary transportation hub, Berlin Hauptbahnhof, is a new take on the Berlin Mix. It features interesting architecture, apartments with scenic views, green city squares, and waterfront promenades, while still being close to all practical services and amenities. Without doubt, EDGE Grand Central is perfectly positioned to help occupants make the most of home and work life.

Challenge

A key challenge was our client’s imperative to create the smartest building in Germany and also to build on a revolutionary project portfolio in the Netherlands. Following on from where EDGE Olympic in Amsterdam left off, EDGE Grand Central will be the second major project in a portfolio of new-generation smart buildings championed by EDGE Technologies.

EDGE actively promotes sustainable mobility, making a point of choosing locations with excellent access to public transport and the right mix of public facilities within walking distance. Here, in spite of working a difficult site (adjacent to a high-end rail corridor and major federal road tunnelling right next door) the client aims to deliver the smartest building in Germany, maximising sustainability by minimising energy usage.

Buro Happold was enlisted to provide sustainability consulting as well s DGNB and WELL assessments for this project.

Solution

Smart ceilings – active elements that heat and cool the interior, providing light, and meeting high acoustic standards – ensure the environmentally-friendly use of primary energy resources. This smart system maintains the ideal ambient temperature, enhancing personal wellbeing and boosting performance. Frameless integrated luminaires keep the entire ceiling surface flush with no additional seams, masking, covers, or colour discrepancies. The development also predicts space use, keeping its carbon footprint and operating costs to an absolute minimum.

Buro Happold’s matchless in-depth knowledge of DGNB and WELL stood the team in good stead. EDGE Grand Central has been certified as Platinum by the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB) and is the first pre-certified WELL project in Germany.

Value

Equipped with a leading-edge internet protocol (IP) spine, EDGE Grand Central provides a communication infrastructure which connects everyone and everything whether wired or wireless, and removes much of the routine digital frustration of modern life. A complementary smart building app is also in the pipeline. The easy-to-use app will allow individuals to adjust their surroundings, offering things like personalised climate control, room booking, user localisation, and a great deal more. In addition, a decentralised fitness studio has been set up for the staff and the catering department grows its own salad in the building.