Meet the TRIQBRIQ team at the Real Estate Arena and find out more about our new WS15 solid timber construction system.
With this guideline in mind, representatives of the automotive and building sectors met again in Berlin last Wednesday and Thursday. The goal of the third and thus last CEWI workshop was to finalise the »Circular Economy« projects of the respective working groups and thus prepare them for their presentation in July. TRIQBRIQ AG was again represented by Lewin Fricke, who has been involved in the policy dialogue working group since the first meeting of the CEWI project community. Adjusting the substantive depth The first day was spent by the WG reviewing the individual company positions that had been worked out up to that point in terms of their substantive depth. Together, those present agreed to significantly reduce the number of positions and to formulate the remaining arguments to be communicated to policy-makers in more general terms. According to one member of the WG, »Given the breadth of participating companies, there is no other way to achieve a common pattern of content«. An »unagitated policy dialogue« On the second day, the WG worked out a format in which the finalised positions are to be discussed with politicians in an »unagitated policy« dialogue. It is planned that the CEWI team will draft a paper that reflects the positions of the WG participants in advance. Based on this, the sector representatives want to enter into an exchange with department staff in an interministerial expert discussion. The goal is to discuss, on the basis of practical examples, where Circular Economy in the construction industry is still hampered by regulation. At the same time the business representatives want to understand what changes politicians are planning in these areas for the future. Discussing »pain points« from practice In terms of content, the participants identified the five thematic blocks of »new construction«, »existing buildings«, »materials«, »material cycles« and »digitalisation«. These are currently particularly important for promoting Circular Economy in the construction industry. They have formulated »pain points« for all areas, which are to be discussed with politicians on the basis of practical examples. Lewin Fricke, for example, emphasised the importance of government funding (bridge funding) to financially bridge lengthy approval phases for circular material innovations. Especially for start-ups, this would be an enormous help to expand the circular economy in the building sector. We are not looking for the big stage The #COMMUNICATE event of the CEWI project community is planned for the end of June. Here, the individual projects of the WGs will be pitched on a big stage and can then be discussed further at the respective project stands. The aim is to gain further partners who can be helpful for the projects. Considering the background of the mature project planning of the policy dialogue event and the deliberately chosen quiet character of the discussion format, the Policy Dialogue WG is not planning a pitch for its project there. »We are looking forward to the exchange within the framework of the exhibition of the individual projects and will be glad to be represented here – but we don’t see any added value for our own pitch on a big stage,« said Lewin Fricke during the final project presentation at the end of the second workshop day. Valuable exchange parallel to the content-related work Apart from the work on the content level, the interpersonal encounters were not neglected. »I am particularly pleased that I met so many colleagues from other start-ups. It is important that young companies get the chance to present their innovations and discuss them with established industry representatives within the framework of such events,« said Lewin Fricke. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all those involved in making the previous three workshops such valuable events for Circular Economy – first and foremost the organisers: WWF Germany; the Stiftung KlimaWirtschaft and the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy, as well as the Federal Ministry for Environment and Consumer Protection, which funds the entire project.
These and other questions were discussed by our public relations officer Lewin Fricke in the German Bundestag on March 24, 2022. He accepted the invitation of the two members of the Bundestag Niklas Wagener MdB and Tessa Ganserer MdB, Bündnis 90/Die Grünen, to explain the advantages of building with calamity wood together with their scientific staff. Forestry topics in focus In the office of Niklas Wagener MdB, forest policy spokesman for Bündnis 90/Die Grünen, Lewin Fricke exchanged views with his scientific assistant Lorenz Berger. The focus was particularly on forestry aspects. Together, the discussion partners came to the conclusion that it is important to sensibly transfer wood from calamities into high-yield value chains. At the same time, it is important not to neglect to renaturalize the damaged areas in the stands under the aspects of environment, climate and animal protection. This idea is in line with our internal guidelines and reflects the basic principles of our TRIQBRIQ business model. Timber construction cannot function without sustainable forest conversion. Need for optimization of the GEG and the KrWG At the second meeting, Lewin Fricke talked to Tessa Ganserer MdB. She is a member of the Parliamentary Advisory Council for Sustainable Development (PBnE) for her parliamentary group Bündnis 90/Die Grünen. As a qualified forestry expert, Ganserer is a proven expert on all topics relating to forests and their economic use. In her function as chairwoman of the PBnE, Ms. Ganserer was not only interested in forestry issues, but also in questions concerning possible optimization potentials in the Building Energy Act (GEG) and the Closed Substance Cycle Waste Management Act (KrWG). Lewin Fricke emphasized in particular the points that could be improved from the point of view of a construction start-up. Tessa Ganserer MdB, Copyright: Bündnis 90/Die Grünen im Bundestag, Kaminski New Bundestag building: built with climate protection in mind In line with the topics of the meetings, both appointments took place in the new Bundestag building »Luisenblock West«. You can’t see it from the outside of the new building in the government district, but it is actually made of wood. »In the context of various events, I have already heard presentations about this exciting construction project. I am very pleased that the Bundestag administration has decided to have this innovative project built using an absolutely efficient modular timber construction method,« says Lewin Fricke about the building, which was completed in record time. German Parliament building Luisenblock West As a manufacturer of a timber construction system, we are of course very pleased that these exciting appointments took place in a timber building. We would like to thank the political representatives for their time and are confident that politics will find a healthy mix of »promoting and demanding« in the coming years and support circular material innovations and their scaling along the way.
Vonovia and the Fraunhofer Alliance hosted the kick-off conference ≫Perspectives on the Future of Building≪ at the Design Offices in Berlin on 23.03.22. Representatives from politics, science and the construction industry – including our Head of Public Relations Lewin Fricke – discussed the perspectives on the future of building. The conference marks the start of a dialogue and work process on sustainable building that will become even more concrete over the next few months. On 23 November 2022, the final results will be presented at the Futurium Berlin. Keynote speeches from politics and science The event started with keynote speeches by Min.- Dirig. Lothar Fehn Krestas (BMWSB) and Prof. Dr. Torsten Zuberbier (Charité). The politician stated that we must ≫think in terms of lifecycles≪ when producing building materials and buildings, and that grey emissions are becoming a focus for legislators, particularly in perspective of future funding programmes. One of the contributions from the scientific side was that health issues such as allergens will also play a more important role in the construction industry in the future. Vonovia initiates Innovation-Pitch The Chief Representative of Vonovia SE, Konstantina Kanellopoulos, used the event to initiate an innovation pitch in which startups and established players from the construction and housing industry will have the opportunity to present their innovative strength in a pitch on 18 May 2022. We are of course joining in and invite all other thought in the construction industry to also sign up under the following link: For registration Four workshops and one goal The presentations were followed by four simultaneous workshops on the topics of ≫Production of Building Materials≪, ≫Renewable Resources≪, ≫Circular Economy≪ and ≫Supply Chains and Logistics≪. Lewin Fricke was of course involved in the topic of the production of building materials and explained the advantages of cicular timber construction based on calamity wood. The combined results of the individual workshops were then presented to all participants by Vonovia employees in a subsequent panel discussion. The most important common point here is certainly the goal that we need a climate-neutral construction sector and building stock by 2045. With this goal and the upcoming workshop dates in mind, the moderator Kerstin Pettenkofer dismissed the guests into the Berlin afternoon sun.
At the invitation of Umwelttechnik BW GmbH, our head of public relations, Lewin Fricke, took part in a design thinking workshop on the topic of R-building materials (resource-conserving building materials) on March 15 and 16, 2022. Circularity must be thought ahead During the 1.5-day workshop, Lewin Fricke was joined at the Impact Hub Stuttgart by other representatives of well-known building materials manufacturers and construction companies to discuss the possibilities of circular construction. The event was moderated by Jonas Umgelter (Umwelttechnik BW) and Christoph Soukup (Steinbeis Consulting Center Circular Economy), who digitally added other stakeholders from the world of sustainable construction. Dr. Anna Braune from the DGNB explained that circularity must also be thought of with a view to the conversion of buildings. Representatives of municipalities, the LUBW and the Ministry of the Environment of Baden-Wuerttemberg provided insights into the political components of circular construction. Steffanie Kerlein from the Internationale Bauausstellung Stuttgart pointed out that the IBA’27 is the »platform for experimental construction« in the Stuttgart urban region. Achieving circularity with the building process in mind Together, the participants worked out a »mural board« on site, with the support of the digital guests, on which they depicted the entire process of a construction project. In the spirit of the design thinking approach, »personas« were created that could theoretically contribute to the failure or success of circular economy in this process. Based on the question of what »pain points« these personas would have and how these could be remedied, solution concepts were derived to make circular building materials successful in real projects. »Especially the interplay between the actors and the exchange with the digitally connected experts had a positive impact on this workshop. It is important that the construction industry implements circularity in all its areas. I’m happy to say that this is exactly what we have been working on for the last two days. We discussed and developed necessary steps and solutions and now we have to work on actually implementing them.« Lewin Fricke, TRIQBRIQ AG Where do we go from here? The developed solution concepts will be summarized by workshop organizer Jonas Umgelter and will be discussed again in a digital get-together. All participants showed great interest in further cooperation in the sense of the circular economy and who knows… maybe something will even be built in the end.
Our vision is a profound change in the construction industry towards holistic sustainable building and living. This month, our CEO Max Wörner, TRIQBRIQ inventor Werner Grosse and our Head of PR & PA Lewin Fricke were guests at Heuer Dialog GmbH events twice to present our innovation TRIQBRIQ and our ideas for achieving climate goals. Heuer Dialog: Jahreskongress Quartier On September 16 and 17, 2021, the first “Quartier Annual Congress“ of Heuer Dialog GmbH took place in Bielefeld. The topic of the event, which will be held annually from now on, was “Beyond the borders – a new asset class is in the starting blocks“. In a hybrid presentation (online and analog), our Head of Public Affairs & Public Relations, Lewin Fricke, introduced our pilot project in Stuttgart-Feuerbach and explained the extent to which innovative building projects can serve as models for entire neighborhoods. In particular, he focused his presentation on our patented TRIQBRIQ timber construction system. Afterwards, he was available to answer questions from the approximately 70 members of the audience. Lewin Fricke was accompanied by TRIQBRIQ inventor Werner Grosse. He provided the congress guests with further information at an exhibition stand made up of TRIQBRIQs. Heuer Dialog: 13. Immobilien Dialog Region Stuttgart On 21.09.2021, our Managing Director, Max Wörner, took part in the “13. Immobilien Dialog Region Stuttgart” organized by Heuer Dialog GmbH. In a panel discussion on the topic “In check: Innovative building materials – together we can do more“, Max Wörner explained what really matters when it comes to innovative building materials and what role our TRIQBRIQ will play in sustainable construction in the future. In keeping with the title of the event, the podium featured other high-profile figures from the construction industry. The Managing Director of the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB), Dr. Christine Lemaitre, moderated the panel and guided Walter Feeß, winner of the German Environmental Award, Dr. Ulrich Klotz, CEO of Ed. Züblin AG, Oliver Wilm, Managing Director of Wolff & Müller Holding GmbH & Co. KG and Max Wörner through a really exciting discussion.
In addition, around 250 million tons of construction waste are generated in Germany alone, which corresponds to around 60 % of the national waste volume. But despite these devastating numbers there is little progress in politics. Max Wörner, CEO of TRIQBRIQ, comments on this problem: »We are running out of time and the construction sector is too slow.« Members of the German Bundestag Christian Kühn (Bündnis 90/Die Grünen) and Hagen Reinhold (FDP), the spatial planner Dr. Cecilia Braun, as well as Andreas Kunsmann (COO Polycare) and Max Wörner (CEO TRIQBRIQ) were present. Innovations fail due to approval processes Watch here! Together with our guests, we came to the conclusion that fundamental changes are necessary if the construction sector is to become climate-neutral by 2025. Circular pilot projects such as Polycare and TRIQBRIQ are crucial to achieve such a transformation in the value chain. But sustainable innovations often fail to gain approval. In this regard, Kunsmann and Wörner appealed for more openness in politics. However, politics also faces challenges: “We want to be innovative, but it doesn’t work because I can’t enforce it, neither with the customer nor with the authorities”, Hagen Reinhold (FDP) commented on the problem. Dr. Cecilia Braun also emphasized that there are enough ideas, but that implementation is a problem. Overall, we all agree on one thing: there must be a change. We hope for a positive development and thank all participants!
The TRIQ pilot project in Stuttgart-Feuerbach combines resource-saving construction with future-oriented living concepts. An environmentally friendly apartment building that integrates sustainability into all areas of everyday life is to be built on a property of almost 700 square meters. 100% recyclable buildings with TRIQBRIQ 100% recyclable materials are used in the construction of the building – concrete and cement are consistently avoided. Instead, the pilot project relies on the specially developed and patented TRIQBRIQ timber construction system for shell construction. Regional damaged and storm wood is used for TRIQBRIQs, which saves long transport routes, costs, and CO2. We currently want to realize the first fully sustainable residential building in Germany. To do this, we check all building materials for their recyclability and CO2 balance and completely do without cement and concrete. Instead, we rely on TRIQBRIQS as a climate-neutral alternative. Max Wörner – Founder and CEO of TRIQ GMBH A responsible and sustainable energy supply also adds to the protection of the climate. Photovoltaic systems and innovative hydrogen technologies create a completely energy self-sufficient and climate-neutral building. In addition, TRIQ establishes a closed water cycle management system: rainwater is collected and processed into service water in a filter system. Every household produces its own drinking water with the help of a reverse osmosis system. The gray water used is then converted back into service water. Therefore, the water cycle of nature is optimally used for everyday needs. Comprehensive living concepts support the residents in living more sustainably. At TRIQ, the community is very important: Various sharing offers, such as the shared use of e-cars and e-bikes, are provided. TRIQ also offers a communal garden. With the help of regional gardeners, they produce their own food. In addition, there will be home deliveries with regional and healthy products, which will support local farmers. With its well-thought-out concept, TRIQ is the first holistically sustainable residential project in Germany. With a focus on the TRIQBRIQ timber construction system, climate targets can also be achieved in the construction sector. More about the TRIQ Pilot Project
