In the May issue, we discuss the possible abolition of the HOAI. We let the landscape architects have their say online and ask for their opinions.

In the May issue, landscape architect and expert Dieter Pfrommer discusses what would happen if the European Commission were to overturn the HOAI. He is certain that landscape architecture would face upheaval if the scale of fees were to be abolished. We asked landscape architects about their assessments and expectations, here are their statements:

Christian Burkhardt from Burkhardt Sandler Landschaftsarchitekten: We view a possible abolition of the HOAI as very critical. Without HOAI, there are no defined services. This leads to uncertainty on both sides as to what to do and what to demand. I can’t imagine how this would work without the HOAI as a basis. Do the clients make their own individual provisions, which the contractor then has to deal with anew each time, or do the contractors make their own provisions, which the client then has to deal with?

Michael Heinze from landschaftDrei: If the HOAI is overturned, it is to be feared that our services will be defined solely in terms of price. It’s easy to imagine what that would lead to. Dumping prices across the board, which makes quality-oriented work extremely difficult, if not impossible. It will be our task to convince future clients that quality has its price.

Jens Rossa from r+b Landschaftsarchitektur: Worrying! We regard the HOAI as an essential seal of quality for a sustainable building culture, among other things! Under no circumstances should the primacy of price be placed above that of quality. If you look at the costs for the landscape architect, these only make up a single-digit percentage of the costs of the building over its life cycle. Demotivation due to inadequate fees not only harms the planners in the long term, but also the clients, the much-vaunted art of building and the numerous sustainability aspects that stand for stability and the natural regeneration capabilities of the respective system.

Tilman Latz from Latz+Partner: ” Well, a discontinuation will dramatically change the business in Germany. Up to now, we have been able to achieve high quality with the calculated fees, even if the client(s) had less interest in it. In future, this would often only be possible through self-exploitation, because the VOF procedures that are increasingly becoming the norm – even following competition procedures that supposedly aim for the “highest quality” – by and large only reward dumping.

From June 4-8, 2014, the architecture platform “alpitecture” presented itself for the first time at the Architecture Biennale in Venice. More than 2,500 guests visited the “Topographic Structure” exhibition at Palazzo Bollani, where architecture firms and South Tyrolean companies presented their work. The architects were invited to provide insights into their current building projects via installations made of cardboard boxes. A total of 17 installations were created and visitors were able to spend time in the Venetian palazzo […]

From June 4-8, 2014, the architecture platform “alpitecture” presented itself for the first time at the Architecture Biennale in Venice. More than 2,500 guests visited the “Topographic Structure” exhibition at Palazzo Bollani, where architecture firms and South Tyrolean companies presented their work. The architects were invited to provide insights into their current building projects via installations made of cardboard boxes. A total of 17 installations were created, while the Venetian palazzo was also a place to stay and exchange ideas. Themed events took place in the evenings, including the discourse “Baumeister Focus” with Stephan Trüby, co-curator of this year’s Biennale and the June issue of Baumeister; as well as a Pecha Kucha evening with presentations by the exhibiting offices and companies.

The requirement to use cardboard boxes as building material for the installations had a reason: because with Venice, the project took place in a location that has no roads, the logistics take place over the water and also during one of the world’s largest architecture events – the 14th Architecture Biennale. Considering that the lagoon city was built on piles, it is worth thinking about the impact of additional loads, such as the passengers streaming into the city from huge cruise ships, on its statics. For these reasons, the issue of weight was already a focus in the run-up to the Topographic Structure exhibition. The choice fell on cardboard boxes measuring 40x40x40 centimeters.

Each of the participating architecture firms received 32 of these cardboard boxes, 30 of which had to be used in their installations. The monovolume office from Bolzano had one of the most elaborate constructions. Their exhibit looked like an explosion – an impression that was reinforced by the mirror panels attached, in which selected projects were reflected. Lava and yes architecture decided to laser their installations. Querkraft took advantage of the height of the cardboard boxes to display and provide information about their CGLA residential tower in Vienna. Zaha Hadid Architects also referred to a current building project with their model: the Messner Mountain Museum at Kronplatz, Dolomites. Three current projects were presented by bergmeisterwolf using cardboard models. Roland Baldi focused on his 20 years of work as an architect. Graft focused on their recently won hotel project in Lofer near Salzburg. Snøhetta printed a selection of projects on the boxes alongside the likenesses of its employees.