May 14, 2025, Karlsruhe. What began as a seemingly conventional technical conference turned out to be a wake-up call for the entire construction and planning culture in Germany. At this year’s VDI Science Forum, thought leaders from academia and practice gathered to discuss nothing less than a radical transformation of the construction sector: modular and serial construction took center stage—as a strategic response to labor shortages, cost pressures, and the immense challenge of providing affordable and climate-neutral housing.
The forum was opened by Univ.-Prof. Dr.-Ing. Stefan Winter (TUM) and Univ.-Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Arch. Elisabeth Endres (KIT). Their message was clear: anyone who still believes that the housing crisis can be solved with conventional tools has missed the structural shift already underway in the building sector.
The difference is not just academic—product versus method
Incidentally, modular construction is also called serial construction, because the industry uses a construction method here that produces modular parts in series. The debate around modular versus serial construction is more than semantics—it reveals a structural ambiguity in construction practice. "System construction" and "modular construction" are often used interchangeably, although they differ in technical and legal terms. One central distinction: building product versus building method. Anything that leaves the factory gate is a building product and requires a usability certificate. The method of assembling those products on-site is a building method, which requires an application certificate. In practice, this results in a jungle of approval procedures in urgent need of harmonization.
Why we fail—and how to change it
Professor Winter highlighted why we continue to stagnate in the building industry despite digital tools and new standards:
* Fragmented funding guidelines in social housing
* Inconsistent implementation of model building codes across federal states
* Lack of consideration for serial building in urban planning
* Architectural dogmas and outdated procurement systems
* Building standards that fail to keep pace with reality
A strategy shift with system—but not without structure
Industrial construction has already demonstrated its potential: type approvals, currently recognized only in Bavaria, North Rhine-Westphalia, Hesse, and Saxony-Anhalt, enable serial replication—but only if strict repetition is feasible. Contrary to popular belief, modular construction is not comprehensively regulated. Especially the interfaces between modules and existing buildings are often undefined. Relief is in sight: the new DIN 1052-11:2025 and the updated 2024 Model Timber Construction Guideline now offer a viable framework for modular timber panel systems, including acoustic protection, fire safety, and façade details for buildings up to class 5.
To build simply means to rethink - no bicycle assembly on streets
Dr. Ernst Böhm (B&O Group) put it bluntly: “You’d never think of assembling a bicycle from 2,500 parts on the street—so why do we build like this?” His vision: think holistically, build simply. Procurement should focus on solutions, not isolated buildings—"1x60 triple gymnasiums instead of 60x1." Only through industrial prefabrication, decoupling of structural and interior work, and abandonment of traditional trade logic can 50% in cost, time, and bureaucracy be saved.
The digital twin is no gimmick
Digital planning approaches deserve special attention. Using 3D laser scanning and BIM, digital twins are created that enable millimeter-accurate production—already a reality in ecoworks’ serial renovation projects. Winter spoke of “flexibility through detailed certainty”: better five perfected standard details than daily improvisation.
For Estonia: new connectivity through industrial logic
For companies from Northeast Europe—particularly Estonia—this opens up concrete avenues for cooperation. The concepts discussed in Karlsruhe, from standardized timber panel elements to digital twins and industrial prefabrication, create fresh potential for collaboration along the entire value chain. Strategy consultants and experts in industrial cooperation, are actively working to connect high-performing engineering, digitalization, and timber construction firms with German partners. The goal: to unite complementary competencies, increase efficiency on both sides, and enable scalable, practice-driven collaboration models fit for the international market.
Conclusion: Standardization is the new freedom
Karlsruhe made one thing clear: today, "standardization" no longer merely implies uniformity, but rather precision, planning reliability, and fast execution. The future of construction lies in industrial prefabrication using timber panel systems, digital integration, the courageous simplification of processes, and more complex value chains with suppliers in various locations. What’s still missing is political will: a commitment to harmonize regulations and fully embrace industrial methods. If the automotive industry can create diversity on common platforms—why not the construction sector?
Those who believe we can modernize millions of homes using traditional methods alone are out of touch with reality. Karlsruhe wasn’t just a conference—it was a call to action.
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