LINEAR: Please briefly introduce your company GOLDBECK. What do you specialise in?
Alexander Eschwe: GOLDBECK is a construction and service company that operates throughout Europe. Our range of services includes logistics and industrial halls, multi-storey car parks, office and school buildings, sports halls, fire stations and residential buildings. Revitalizations and building-related services complete the spectrum. Holistic design expertise, in-house industrial prefabrication and leading technologies are the success factors for our element-based construction with system.
LINEAR: Can you give us an insight into the history of GOLDBECK and explain in which direction the company would like to develop in the future?
Alexander Eschwe: GOLDBECK can look back on over five decades of experience in industrial construction. Founded in 1969 as a steel construction company, today the company offers all services from a single source – from design and realization to operation. In-house production forms the backbone of the systematized construction method. The company has been managed by Jörg-Uwe Goldbeck and Jan-Hendrik Goldbeck, the second generation, since 2007. With our systematized construction method, we want to become the market leader in commercial building construction in Europe. We are continuously working on optimizing our internal designing using the BIM method. This enables us to guarantee our customers a holistic service across all phases of a building.
LINEAR: GOLDBECK stands for systematized construction – what does that mean in practice?
Alexander Eschwe: We see buildings as products that we realize from a single source. Our construction system systematizes the invisible and individualizes the visible. We build on the basis of industrially manufactured system elements, which we assemble into a customized building. We produce the majority of our system elements ourselves. With our own production, we ensure the reliable quality of our products and are less dependent on external influences. Many years of experience in designing, construction and operation flow directly into the production of our system elements. In this way, we realize properties that are perfectly tailored to the requirements of building owners and are future-oriented. Our buildings are functional and economical as well as sustainable and aesthetic.
LINEAR: What role does the MEP design play in this area?
Alexander Eschwe: MEP design plays a central role in systematized and serial construction at GOLDBECK. By systematizing MEP components, we speed up the construction process, reduce costs and guarantee high quality at the same time. It is important to consider the MEP at an early stage in the project, which we ensure through integrated design. Examples of prefabricated MEP components are shaft modules, energy centres, energy floors, the MEP components in prefabricated bathrooms and the openings in prefabricated components.
LINEAR: What role does BIM play in your work at GOLDBECK?
Alexander Eschwe: Holistic and integrated design means keeping an eye on the big picture as well as all the details. BIM makes this possible. BIM is our planning method and at the same time our interdisciplinary information hub that interlinks all design and work steps – from production and construction through to operation and possible dismantling. At the center is the virtual 3D model, on which everyone involved works across all trades. This helps to recognize dependencies at an early stage, avoids errors, increases efficiency and ensures that all work interlocks smoothly.
LINEAR: What developments do you expect in the area of integrated design in the coming years?
Alexander Eschwe: Optimized design processes will enable us to further exploit the benefits of integrated design. We also want to provide better tools and automation in the future thanks to a better data basis from the projects. The earlier reliable data is available in the design process, the easier it is to compare variants. We therefore see great potential for more efficient and sustainable consulting and design services.
LINEAR: What role does the "GOLDBECK Building Twin" play and how does it support the structured transfer and utilization of information between project participants?
Alexander Eschwe: Due to the increasing requirements for a GOLDBECK Building Twin, a virtual representation of the building, the demand for the quality of the models and integrated data is growing. All project participants must be able to attach the required information to the model at any time in order to be able to continue to use and maintain the information budget from the design to the operating phase.
LINEAR: How did the collaboration between GOLDBECK and LINEAR come about?
Alexander Eschwe: GOLDBECK had a growing desire for an integrated BIM MEP solution. Therefore, after an extensive test phase of the LINEAR software, we decided to introduce it. The software is currently being rolled out to around 200 employees.
LINEAR: What challenges or requirements were you focussing on at the time that led you to look for a new solution provider?
Alexander Eschwe: The most important advantage is a good interface between CAD (computer-aided design) and calculation. We can save time here, especially in MEP design. Furthermore, the implementation of additional tools, general automation and analyzing projects is even easier. We are thus increasing the quality of the model and meeting the increasing demands placed on a GOLDBECK Building Twin.
LINEAR: What were the main reasons for working with LINEAR?
Alexander Eschwe: The software is one of the market leaders in this field. The overall concept and the latest developments also show that the visions of LINEAR and GOLDBECK in this area coincide. We were also impressed by the close support during the implementation phase and we are pleased to have the opportunity to discuss further developments.
LINEAR: Which design services are currently being realized with LINEAR solutions?
Alexander Eschwe: We are currently working on the heating and cooling load, the heating and cooling networks as well as the potable water and ventilation networks from the initial concept through to construction design with the LINEAR software.
LINEAR: Are there already plans or ideas for deepening or expanding the collaboration?
Alexander Eschwe: We are currently in the implementation phase and will continue to adapt the software to our workflow. We look forward to tackling further innovative topics with you in the future.
LINEAR: Thank you very much for the interview!