Highlights:
- Siemensstadt Square is one of Europe’s largest urban redevelopment sites
- Set for completion by 2035, Siemens to invest €750 million into this €4.5 billion project
- Digital innovations from across Siemens Xcelerator portfolio to transform historical industrial site
- Today’s foundation stone laying represents next milestone in development of this carbon neutral urban district
From planning and development to optimized operations, Siemens technology will enable the realization of Siemensstadt Square, a sustainable city district of the future in Berlin.
Spanning an area of 76 hectares, the foundation stone was laid today at this urban redevelopment project, which represents an investment of €4.5 billion. Through collaboration with a number of project partners, Siemens will help transform the industrial site of more than 100 years in Berlin Spandau into an inclusive, urban district comprising production, research, learning, and living in one place.
Combining the real and the digital worlds, Siemens technology will form the backbone of the new neighborhood. Intelligent digital twin technology sits at the heart of planning, optimization and operation of the urban infrastructure, which will comprise everything from renewable energy supply to sustainable building management.
By gradually building up a digital image of the future neighbourhood, urban planning, construction and infrastructure data can be used multidimensionally and over the life cycle of the city district in a more efficient way, adding greater value and optimizing sustainable outcomes. This intelligent technology also makes it possible to identify challenges at an early stage and to develop efficient solutions in a targeted manner.
“Siemensstadt Square is a model for how urban development can be successfully shaped worldwide and a blueprint for the sustainable transformation of former industrial zones.” commented Matthias Rebellius, Managing Board Member of Siemens AG and CEO of Smart Infrastructure.
“We are very proud to be implementing such a wide range of Siemens technology across infrastructure, industry and transport within the district. This is a real example of how we are using technology to truly transform the everyday for every one of the 35,000 people who will live and work in Siemensstadt Square.”
Transforming buildings into smart, efficient and sustainable assets
Siemensstadt Square demonstrates how digital products can be used to modernize and retrofit existing infrastructure. In addition to digital twin technology, Building X 360° Viewer, serves as a collaborative tool using virtual building representations for planning retrofits to existing building stock. Building X is a digital building platform that supports customers to digitalize, manage, and optimize their building operations. It is part of Siemens Xcelerator, an open digital business platform that enables customers to accelerate their digital transformation easier, faster and at scale.
Meanwhile, looking to the future and the development of new office buildings planned for 2027, complimentary digital solutions, Building X Energy Manager and the integrated on-premise building management system, Desigo CC create the basis for optimized building operations.
Utilizing Artificial Intelligence (AI) insights, the Building X Energy Manager application can be used for monitoring, analyzing and optimizing the energy consumption, cost and carbon footprint of the building portfolio and can deliver energy savings of up to 30 percent. Meanwhile, Desigo CC enables central monitoring and efficient control of building heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) operations.
Efficient and renewable energy usage for a carbon neutral future
The Energy Digital Twin from Siemens Smart Infrastructure has also been piloted to simulate the energy consumption of future phases at Siemensstadt Square, which will be realized in stages up to 2035.
Ensuring that all of this energy comes from renewable sources, Siemens is working in collaboration with Berliner Wasserbetriebe and a local energy supplier, to develop Europe’s largest wastewater heat exchanger of its type. In combination with heat pumps, this system will supply the district with 100 percent CO2-neutral heating and cooling, with the electricity required for this generated 100 percent from renewable energies.
Electrifying transport for emission free mobility
Siemens is not only transforming how people live and work within Siemensstadt, but also how they move. Public transportation, walkability and bikeability are the core focus of the sustainable mobility strategy for the district.
This sustainable neighborhood concept includes e-mobility, with up to 50 percent of parking spaces set to be equipped with electric charging points from across the Siemens portfolio.
Matthias Rebellius concludes: “This project offers a clear way forward for other metropolises around the world that encounter similar challenges of how to modernize in a sustainable way. It proves that by combining the real and digital worlds, sustainable urban development is even possible in historically grown structures – the technology exists and in Siemensstadt Square we will have a real-life example for everyone to experience first-hand.”
For more information on Siemens Smart Infrastructure, please see:
Siemens Smart Infrastructure