Pioneer in sustainable social housing: the Hummelkaserne project in Graz

In 2016, four six-storey buildings were constructed on the site of the former Hummel barracks in Graz, which not only represented Austria’s highest timber housing construction of its time, but also set new standards in social housing in terms of design, sustainability and safety. The 92 social housing units in the Reininghaus urban development area were built to the passive house standard, with the robust and sustainable timber element construction methods with reinforced concrete cores offering a cost-efficient and aesthetically pleasing solution. The efficient floor plan design and the prefabricated timber elements enabled fast and cost-effective realisation, supported by a public walkway through the area and a well thought-out fire protection concept.