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2014-02-20

Woodcube Residential Building in Hamburg, Germany

A building with an impressive eco-balance was presented at the International Building Exhibition (IBA) in Hamburg, Germany. Being CO2-neutral in both its production and operation, the Woodcube's energy level corresponds approximately to that of a passive house. All materials used in the timber cube are completely recyclable and biodegradable.

Isenmann Ingenieure from Haslach, a customer of Dlubal Software, was in charge of the structural planning. The calculation and design of the access core and the pile foundation made of reinforced concrete were performed in RFEM.
The following data refer to the reinforced concrete structure of "Woodcube".

Length: ~ 52 ft | Width: ~ 52 ft | Height: ~ 105 ft
Nodes: 232 | Members: 39 | Surfaces: 51 | Finite Elements: 5033

Timber and Reinforced Concrete Structure

What is really revolutionary is the fact that the timber core of the building, including ceilings and floors, consists of completely untreated wood remaining visible in the outdoor as well as the indoor areas.

The Woodcube is composed of prefabricated wall, floor, and roof elements consisting of timber. Due to the high degree of prefabrication, the wooden shell was completed within four weeks. It is placed on the basement and built around the central access core with the staircase and the elevator, both made of reinforced concrete.

The basement rests on a total of 22 full displacement bored piles of Ø 20 inches, which are inserted 42.6 ft into the ground. The load applied on each pile head is up to 224.81 kip. In order to transfer the loading in an optimal way, a circumferential pile head beam is arranged below the external walls.

The basement is made of waterproof concrete. All in all, the external walls of the wooden cube have a thickness of 12.5 inches, including a layer of t = 1.1 inches for thermal insulation consisting of softboards. The facade is based on a ventilated coating made of untreated larch wood.

The loads are transferred by the external walls and the walls of the central access core. Thus, no further columns or load‑bearing interior walls are needed. This, in turn, allows for an individual room layout.


Project Specifications

Model data

Number of Nodes 232
Number of Lines 305
Number of Members 39
Number of Surfaces 51
Number of Solids 0
Number of Load Cases 15
Number of Load Combinations 10
Number of Result Combinations 0
Total Weight 997.566 tons
Dimensions 49.54 x 106.09 x 49.54 feet

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