City
and Climate Change Because of global warming and rising water levels of the oceans
and the groundwater - the rivers have to absorb more water in future.
The further increase of dikes could not be longer a
sustainable solution and we must find new strategies for houses and cities.
At the moment there are no solutions for historical
city centre and monuments. But for new urban settlements and expansions near to
the water there are innovative possibilities: floating buildings.
A floating building is rising and falling with the
water. It could float wherever it is needed and is a symbol of the flexibility
of the ideal urban transformation in times of climate change.
Floating buildings can be formed into new urban
configurations. These cities could be quickly adapted to changing necessaries
and conditions. They generate the new city types of the 21th Century: the floating
city. IBA DOCK In Müggenburger Zollhafen –a port
of the Elbe in Hamburg - Germany’s largest floating building is located: the
IBA DOCK.
The building and the gangway
move up and down with the daily tide of 3,5 m. It floats on the water even in extreme storms and adjusts to
the nature. A bridge leads to the entrance on the top deck, accessing
exhibition and presentation areas, a city model, cafeteria and an outdoor
terrace. East to the exhibition area there are offices for the staff. The building is made on a 43 m long and 25 m wide concrete
pontoon that serve as a pier. The
3-floors structures were built in a modular lightweight steel frame with
prefabricated modules. They were
assembled on site and can be dismounted when the building changing the location
and passing bridges. Subsequently the modules can be re-assembled and varied.
Prof. H. Slawik
Architect
Fischerstraße 1-A 30167 Hannover Tn 0511-1696101 Tx 0511-1696102 mobil 0172-5172584 mail@slawik.net
Energy
and Sustainability The IBA DOCK is also an exhibition of
innovative construction and energy saving technologies - a great example of
sustainability and energy efficiency: Almost all components are reusable and
the whole building can be assembled/de-assembled/re-assembled.
The IBA DOCK uses only the environmental energy of the sun
and the water with CO2-neutral heating and cooling system. A heat pump exploits
energy from the Elbe and the electricity demand of this is covered by a photovoltaic
system on the roof. Other cooling or heating is not needed.