Berlin

GoWest Commercial Estate

Construction pit for GoWest

Construction pits for a new urban quarter

Covering an area of around 74,000 m², the former factory site is one of the larger development sites in the Berlin metropolitan area. As part of the quarter’s development, the construction pits for the first construction phases as well as for a data centre were excavated. The construction pits reach depths of up to 14 m. The subsoil consists predominantly of clay. To stabilise the construction pits, a circumferential soldier pile shoring wall was first constructed. This was followed by the construction of approximately 8,000 m² of diaphragm walls with wall thicknesses of 60 or 80 cm and depths of up to 25 m. Depending on local conditions, grouted anchors in up to three anchor courses or diagonal bracing were used to reinforce the construction pits.

Diaphragm walls as part of the building structure

The diaphragm walls permanently serve as the external basement walls and transfer loads from the building to the subsoil. The basement slabs are directly connected to the diaphragm walls, which remain visible in certain areas of the underground car park. To facilitate the subsequent connection of the floor structures, embedded parts were incorporated during the fabrication of the reinforcement cages in accordance with the construction drawings.

Construction in an inner-city environment

The works took place within an existing urban quarter with adjacent buildings as well as existing infrastructure. In addition to the geological conditions, the space constraints within the construction site as well as the interfaces with the other construction phases had to be taken into account. Site organisation and construction processes were adapted to the conditions of the inner-city location.

Planning and execution for the construction pits

PORR special civil engineering planning GmbH was involved in the detailed design from an early stage of the project. As part of the planning, support for the diagonal braces on diaphragm wall barrettes was specified and implemented. This solution was integrated into the construction sequences for the basement levels. Furthermore, the number of joints required in the floor slab was reduced.

Basis for the subsequent construction phases

With the completion of the construction pits, the conditions were created for the subsequent structural works. This marked the start of a further phase in the development of the GoWest commercial estate on the site of the former Reemtsma cigarette factory.