National Competition
The Ingerkingen Multipurpose Hall by T.T. Prof. Florian Kaiser has been honored with the HolzbauPlus Prize in the “Renovation and Refurbishment” category of the national competition. The award was presented on April 14, 2026, by Alois Rainer, Federal Minister of Food, Agriculture, and Home Affairs, during the 7th German Timber Construction Congress in Berlin. The jury particularly commended the consistent preservation and further development of the existing structure, as well as the courage to expand upon it.
Architectural education is undergoing a process of change. Many of the questions students raise today can only be answered to a limited extent using traditional design methods. Circular construction, reuse of materials, and renovation of existing buildings: students are actively demanding these topics. They are interested in what circular architecture might look like, and they want to do the right thing. For us as educators, this raises the question of how we can adapt our teaching approaches
To DAB- Online
The Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Regional Development and Housing (MLW), in collaboration with the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and our department (KHB), is hosting a two-hour public evening lecture on effective structural wood preservation as part of the BW Timber Construction Initiative, followed by a reception.
Invitation
The inaugural lecture by T.T. Prof. Florian Kaiser drew a large audience to the Fritz-Haller Lecture Hall in Karlsruhe. In his presentation, he offered fascinating insights into his research and teaching and demonstrated how current issues in architecture intersect in both theory and practice. A recording of the lecture is now available online.
Video on YouTube
With his professorship at KIT, Prof. Florian Kaiser is placing the life cycle of buildings at the center of architectural education.
In conversation with us, he describes how the renovation of existing buildings, reclaimed wood, and robotic manufacturing are becoming the building blocks of a circular design culture
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The 2025 German Sustainability Award for Architecture has been awarded to the multipurpose hall in Ingerkingen, designed by TT. Prof. Florian Kaiser and the team at Atelier Kaiser Shen, in recognition of outstanding achievements in the field of sustainable architecture.
Insights German sustainability award
Is a building with valuable timber structures about to be demolished in your area or in your neighborhood? Our professorship is looking for high-quality old wood from beams, girders, floorboards or similar elements. Ideally, the existing building should already be in the process of being dismantled.
During the first week for new students at KIT, the various departments offer opportunities to learn about their areas of focus and meet the faculty members. Together with the students, we designed and built furniture made from reclaimed materials sourced in Karlsruhe. The design process was unique because we began by taking measurements of the reclaimed wood.
The work "Umbauen & Umnutzen" by Korbinian Rapp and Vitus Kaufmann, created at the Chair of Circular Timber Construction (Head: T.T. Prof. Florian Kaiser) at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), was awarded the student prize "Innovative Timber Use and Timber Construction Baden-Württemberg 2025".
Umbauen & Umnutzen