At the beginning of 2025, the south-facing entrance area of the building was fitted with a solar thermal collector façade. This was the first implementation of the DESTINI research project, funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK), and developed in cooperation with the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE), the Borderstep Institute for Innovation and Sustainability, and Schindler Fenster + Fassaden GmbH. At Priedemann, the façade is always considered as an integrated system. In the DESTINI project, there is an additional focus on integrating solar energy generation. This resulted in the development of an external sun protection system comprising large rotating slats, each containing heat pipes. Thanks to a specially designed automation concept, the slats are able to follow the position of the sun throughout the day. In addition to the entrance façade, the demonstrator includes an outdoor living concept in the form of a pavilion that will serve as a lounge and work area for employees in future. Both are connected to the building's heating system with additional heat storage, which contributes to the building's positive energy balance, particularly during the transitional periods between summer and winter.

Seeing how an in-house developed system becomes a reality here is exciting. In this sense, the demonstrator façade serves as a best practice example of the Priedemann Façade Lab's mindset, an in-house platform that fosters close collaboration between experts from various fields, including research, business, industry, and academia. These collaborative efforts aim to develop innovative façade solutions that address the complex challenges currently facing the construction industry.

Priedemann takes a strategic approach to its research and development activities, focusing on future topics and fields of technology. As well as aspects such as digitalisation and sustainability, the company is particularly interested in adaptive façades and the use of innovative materials. By actively participating in and collaborating with a variety of networks, such as the Innovation Network smart³, employees can stay up to date with the latest research findings, access a range of expertise and initiate exciting interdisciplinary projects.

For Priedemann, it is important to always consider the user's wishes and requirements, as well as the technologies. Façade innovations are designed and constructed as complete systems, then implemented as test samples and demonstration façades and thoroughly tested. Alongside application-oriented research, the research and development team regularly takes on research projects for third parties, investigating the implementation and market potential of new façade products.

Priedemann is an engineering firm, not a façade builder

Upon entering the building, you find yourself in the company's showroom. The spacious ground floor displays over 50 façade elements in their original size — not small samples, but floor-to-ceiling support elements measuring 1.35 metres wide, complete with cladding materials, corner solutions and construction details, looking just like a construction site. Surprisingly, Priedemann does not only exhibit its own developments. In fact, most of the exhibition samples showcase product solutions and materials from a wide range of manufacturers. This is because Priedemann is not a production company, but an independent specialist planner for whom proximity to the built implementation of developed solutions is very important. To create holistically designed and functioning façades, engineers, architects, metalworkers, designers, structural engineers, building physicists, acousticians, programmers and specialists from many other disciplines have been working together under one roof in an interdisciplinary and experience-based manner for over 30 years.

Priedemann operates internationally and manages projects worldwide. Its work ranges from historic to new buildings, from fully glazed to opaque, and from high-performance to energy-efficient façades for all types of use, including offices, hotels, cultural buildings, and residential properties. With our own representative offices in locations such as Dubai in the Middle East and Mumbai, Priedemann is available as a local contact for international projects. Our international network also benefits our own developments. For instance, following its initial development in Germany, the ADAPTEX sun protection concept was implemented and tested at the EcoHouse of the German University of Technology in Oman. The shape memory alloy-based system was intensively monitored on site under demanding climatic conditions involving extreme temperature fluctuations between day and night, and the design was reviewed accordingly. This brings the team a significant step closer to achieving market entry.

Although the research activities aim to develop broadly applicable technical solutions, their application in individual project situations is highly specific. Every project is different and has its own requirements, so it is a constant learning process to continually rethink the best design solution for a façade, taking into account existing products on the market. According to Jens Boeke, it becomes particularly exciting when the façade becomes an active interface between external environmental factors and the comfort requirements of its users. This makes it all the more important to sensibly integrate a wide range of functions, such as solar shading, thermal insulation, ventilation, energy generation and storage, and many other tasks. The planning process quickly becomes complex, which is why Priedemann is increasingly relying on developing its own software solutions.

The PV-Antiblend research project, for example, addresses the low acceptance of reflective PV systems and is developing a planning tool that identifies glare effects and highlights alternative solutions. As part of the "Zukunft Bau" research funding program, a plugin for the 3D planning software Rhinoceros is being developed in collaboration with Flachglas Sachsen GmbH and the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE). The aim of the project is to identify glare risks during the design phase of PV-integrated facades and to prevent negative effects on people, especially road users.

Efficiency and sustainability through innovative façade solutions

All of Priedemann's projects and ideas focus on sustainability and the efficient use of resources, in terms of both energy and materials. The DESTINI project presented here is a prime example of this. To this end, the company combines an understanding of holistic designs, a commitment to aesthetic quality and a keen sense of the functional added value that customers expect. The Digital Twin, Sustainability and Research & Development departments at Priedemann work closely together against this backdrop.

The aim is to develop the optimal solution for each situation by configuring available products and system elements correctly, developing new technologies and designs, and even creating new planning tools.