Foundation stone laid for new building at BfS site in Berlin

New building in Berlin Source: hks Architekten

The Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BfS) is to receive a new, modern building in Berlin-Karlshorst, complete with a situation room for radiological emergency preparedness. The foundation stone for the new office and laboratory complex was laid on 13 September 2022 in the presence of Stefan Tidow, State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV) and BfS President Inge Paulini. Also present at the ceremony were Christoph Krupp, board spokesperson of the Institute for Federal Real Estate (BImA), and Petra Wesseler, president of the Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning (BBR).

Environmental State Secretary Tidow said: "Effective radiation protection is indispensable for Germany, as is made abundantly clear by the tense situation in Ukraine. With the new building in Berlin-Karlshorst, the Federal Office for Radiation Protection is receiving the infrastructure it needs to continue carrying out its duties efficiently in the future."

Inge Paulini

BfS President Paulini explained: "At the Berlin site, the Federal Office for Radiation Protection operates facilities for the monitoring of environmental radioactivity as well as parts of the Federal Radiological Situation Centre, and it is from there that it directs its defence against nuclear hazards. The new building will offer modern, crisis-proof facilities for this work. Moreover, thanks to a district heating supply, a photovoltaic array and construction in accordance with the 'Silver' federal Sustainable Building standard, we’ll also be a step closer to achieving a climate-neutral federal administration."

Handover planned for 2024

The new construction replaces a prefabricated building from the early 1970s that was used by the State Office for Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection (SAAS) of the former German Democratic Republic (GDR). In 1990, some of the staff and real estate of the SAAS in Berlin-Karlshorst were incorporated into the recently established Federal Office for Radiation Protection.

Model of the planned new building Source: Winfried Mateyka

Featuring a Y-shaped layout, the building will be erected as a precast concrete skeleton construction. Over three storeys and with a partial basement level, it will provide 3,600 m² of usable floor space, with working areas in offices, laboratories, a library and workshops. As part of a competition, the piece "Urhütte" – a stylised hut made of branches – by the artist Kang Sunkoo was chosen to provide the building with an artistic focal point and will be placed in the atrium.

The owner and contracting authority of the new building is the Institute for Federal Real Estate (BImA), while responsibility for carrying out the construction lies with the Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning (BBR). Construction costs are forecast to reach some €36 million, with the handover to the BfS as the building's user expected in 2024.