When it comes to renovating older buildings, cities like Vienna, Berlin, Munich, Graz, and Linz face a major challenge:
millions of apartments are due for refurbishment and urgently need modernization. One promising approach is serial renovation – but what does it actually mean?
What does serial renovation mean?
In serial renovation, façade and roof elements as well as complete building services modules are prefabricated industrially – not produced on site, but manufactured in controlled factory conditions.
These prefabricated components are then mounted directly onto the existing building like a modular system.
The result: an energy-efficient “envelope” that makes older buildings fit for the future.
The advantages at a glance
Serial renovation offers numerous benefits compared to conventional refurbishment methods:
- Faster construction time: Prefabrication shortens on-site work to just a few weeks.
- Less disturbance for residents: Installation is quick and generates far less noise and dust.
- Consistent quality: Industrial production ensures uniformly high standards.
- Cost reliability: Standardized processes make costs easier to plan and control.
- Reduced construction waste: Precisely prefabricated components minimize debris and packaging waste – conserving resources and lowering disposal costs.
- High potential: Particularly suitable for multi-family buildings from the 1950s to 1980s, which often require urgent modernization.
Why is serial renovation such a relevant topic in Germany and Austria?
Both Germany and Austria have a vast stock of older buildings – many of which were constructed long before today’s energy standards and are now true energy guzzlers.
- Germany: Of the roughly 36 million buildings, around 75–80 % are considered in need of energy-efficient refurbishment.
- Austria: Here, too, over 60 % of the approximately 2.2 million residential buildings are either not modernized or only partially upgraded.
Adding to the urgency is growing regulatory pressure: Under the EU’s Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), all new buildings must be emission-free by 2030, and existing buildings must become climate-neutral by 2050 as part of the European Green Deal. Germany aims to achieve climate neutrality by 2045, Austria even earlier – by 2040.
Serial renovation as a key to the climate transition
Precisely because of these challenges, serial renovation offers enormous potential. It enables large-scale, cost-efficient modernization of entire residential districts – a decisive lever for cities and housing associations.
Examples from Germany:
- Around 6 million multi-family buildings are considered suitable for serial renovation.
- According to the German Energy Agency (dena), it is realistic to refurbish 100,000 apartments per year using this approach.
Examples from Austria:
- Estimates suggest that around 40 % of existing residential buildings could benefit from serial renovation – particularly in cities such as Vienna, Linz, and Graz, which have many large post-war housing complexes.
- The MasSan study, led by RENOWAVE.AT, is currently analyzing the potential of serial renovation for large-scale buildings in Austria.
The City of Vienna, for example, owns more than 220,000 municipal apartments, many built between the 1950s and 1980s – making it an ideal testing ground for serial modernization.
Solutions by INNOVAMETALL:
- sybkon balconies: Modular balcony systems that integrate perfectly into serial renovation concepts – precise in fit, time-saving, and architecturally refined.
- SOLAR SKY PARK: An innovative system that transforms any parking area into an e-mobility charging hub – complete with integrated photovoltaic installation.
- safetydock: Intelligent mobility stations with integrated energy management, designed for secure bicycle storage, parcel delivery, and more – ideal for modern urban residential developments.
