Commerzbank Frankfurt : prototype for an ecological high-rise = Modell eines ökologischen Hochhauses

The Commerzbank in Frankfurt, designed by Sir Norman Foster and completed in May 1997, is the tallest building in Europe. Unlike most high-rise office buildings, it receives natural daylight and ventilation, has an atriium reaching from the ground to the top floor, and each office or department enjoys an unobstructed view to the outside. It therefore "successfully reconciles seemingly inreconcilable requirements: optimal use of space, a humane working environment, environmental soundness, technological innovation, and architectural quality". The building shows "what possibilites there are...for the high-rise in the dense inner-city". This monograph traces the complete history of the Commerzbank building, from design to realization. Illustrated essays explain the many innovative aspects of this structure, and elucidate the successive phases of the construction process.