Issue 02/2016

the sun is still asleep when Mary is struggling to get up. The girl lives in an orphanage in Palabana, Zambia. Her father died early, and her mother...

Problem The Act on Recycling and Waste Management (Kreislauf-wirtschaftsgesetz) intends for secondary raw materials, such as recycled aggregates...

The expansion of renewable energies is the declared objective of the German Federal Government and a central pillar of the energy transition. The...

Truss structures rank among the most efficient structures in civil engineering. On the one hand, the distribution among tension and compression struts...

Over the last few years, the requirements on bridge structures have considerably increased owing to the growing traffic volume and they are due to...

Since February 2005, the freeze-thaw resistance of concrete pavers had to be determined in the modified slab test in accordance with DIN EN 1338. Some...

Non-structural pavements can also be used to create paved parking areas directly on the ground in parking facilities or on parking decks, in...

Frequently occurring defects on concrete block ­pavements Many of the claims that arise in connection with concrete block pavements are concentrated...

Demolished in 1950 by the GDR regime, the German Lower House of Parliament decided, in 2002, to rebuild the Hohenzollern Palace with three sides of...

Precast reinforced-concrete elements have been successfully used in industrial and commercial construction for many decades. Such structural...

The judgment of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in case C-100/13 of 16 October 2014 [1] has raised serious concerns in all areas of the German...

Efficient use of energy is one of the key prerequisites to ensure sustainable development of our economy. This endeavor is not only related to...

Grosse Bergstrasse, Hamburg-Altona The building at Grosse Bergstrasse is the first multi-story, inner-city IKEA store in Hamburg-Altona. IKEA...

Design and construction in German earthquake areas had previously been governed by DIN 4149 [1]. This standard will be superseded by DIN EN 1998-1...

By introducing the obligation to start an energy audit and/or an energy management system (for larger companies), legislation also aims to include...

After several decades of research, the practical application of steel fibre reinforced concrete is no longer subject to a case-by-case approval but...

Structural concrete components with inclined and/or curved surfaces are becoming increasingly popular in contemporary architecture (Fig. 1). Such...

Concrete needs to exhibit a high freeze-thaw resistance to ensure long service lives, particularly in the case of concrete products used in road...

The reaction of Portland cement with water (the hydration of cement) presents an extremely complex process involving dissolution, crystallization,...

Overview Concrete structures are exposed to complex actions with an influence on durability that may lead to substantial damage during their service...

Bonded anchors are used to connect additional concrete or reinforced-concrete components to existing structures. They are subject to permanent loading...

Semi-precast slabs become more and more important as flat slabs due to the high degree of prefabrication. Their structural design is important in...

Introduction Innovative developments in the area of building materials enable construction of energy-efficient architectural concrete façades. Light...

Sandwich walls and core-insulated double walls with increasingly thick thermal insulation layer are widely used in building practice. They enable...

Precast concrete elements need to be much more flexible today than in the past in order to meet the multi-faceted requirements of building users. New...

In building construction, reinforced concrete floors are frequently used as installation space for building services. Horizontal line distribution is...

Waterproof concrete basements are considered to be reliable and solid, among others, due to the advantage that grouting is possible from inside in...

The presentation is related to recent tendencies and strategies in the European and German code development. In addition to the remarkable...

In addition to determining the exterior look of a building, façades have important protective functions which include the protection against wind and...

Sustainability continues to be a major trend in socioeconomic development and especially in the development of the construction industry, not least...

The ongoing discussion on closed-loop recycling is increasingly focusing on the construction industry which uses significant amounts of mineral...

Concrete is a construction material that – in the context of positive social perception and of the enormous development of its material properties in...

The Wehrhahn underground rapid transit line in Düsseldorf runs north-to-south between two ramp structures and includes six subway stations over a...

Procedure: design competition including preceding ­application procedure, 2009 Rank: 1st prize Completion: 2014 Gross floor space: 5,000 m² Gross...

In Köln-Deutz, an inner-district of Cologne, the Rhine Boulevard, as it is popularly known, is currently under reconstruction. The project involves a...

Present sustainability of construction materials The sustainability debate has played an important role for many years also in the construction...

Introduction Seven partners from research, industry and standardization (see Fig. 1) have joined forces to accelerate the transfer of innovative...

Concrete is the world’s most widely used construction material; currently more than half of it is ready-mix concrete (46 mio. m3 in Germany). Formwork...

Nowadays, about 20 % of the EU population are exposed to noise levels in excess of 65 dB(A). 90% of this noise is caused by road traffic [1]. In...

The energy transition requires electricity to be generated from renewable sources such as wind power. In the foreseeable future, there will be a...

Energy storage systems are becoming increasingly important in the course of expanding generation from wind power and photovoltaics in order to resolve...

On the occasion of the BetonTage congress, a product innovation will be presented, which only recently has celebrated its global premiere in Vienna:...

Material and characteristics The patented high-performance building material Ducon (Ductile Concrete), an ultra-high performance concrete with a...

Construction in existing buildings has gained increasing ­significance in the construction industry in recent years. When the structural framework of...

The large number of existing structures and the high cost of new construction have led to a situation where the strengthening, maintenance and...

Precast concrete elements, double walls with in-situ concrete core, and precast floor plates are enjoying increasing popularity owing to the fact that...

Background The use of bar diameters larger 32 mm enables a significant simplification to be achieved in the reinforcement layout of highly stressed...

Introduction In the end, a sustainable use and maintenance of the infrastructure is an intergenerational duty, which is only fulfilled inadequately by...

In times of growing awareness regarding environmental protection, the parties issuing an invitation to tender also increase the requirements on...

For those responsible only a few years remain to implement the decision taken by politics on June 11, 2011 on a gradual abandonment of nuclear energy....

Preliminary note Sometimes, there is an impression of uncertainty among clients and contracting parties about the requirements to impose on concrete...

Pipelines are used for the economical transportation of a wide variety of different media. Tightness and hydraulic or pneumatic performance are needed...

Overview The aim of the current research project on highly stressed joints in tunnel construction, undertaken by the Department of concrete structures...

On 21 April 2016, info-b, founded in Wiesbaden as the Information Association for German Cast Stone – Informationsgemeinschaft deutscher...

In November 2015, the membership meeting of Betonverband Straße, Landschaft, Garten (SLG – German Concrete Association Road, Landscape, Garden)...

Following the presentation of the retropolation method in BFT International 07/2015 and Part II on building construction published in BFT...

Skanska Sverige AB with its headquarters in Bollebygd, Sweden, has made a name for itself in Sweden as a producer of driven piles. As an innovative...

Non-corrosive concrete reinforcement made of carbon and glass fibers provide for new design possibilities, increasing the efficiency in concrete...