Commerzbank Zentrale
Frankfurt, Germany

HEIGHT: 259m/850 feet
FLOORS: 56 floors
COMPLETION: 1997
ARCHITECT: Foster & Partners

The German political and social environment following re-unification led to the planning of the building. Frankfurt's "Green Party" encouraged Commerzbank's new structure to be noticeably green. Thus, environmental friendliness became a major criteria for the design.
Since Commerzbank was making a clear effort to protect and preserve the natural environment through the original design proposals, the city granted permission for a greater plot size.
This extra land soon provided valuable space, as a six-story building was constructed to the east of the Tower containing more offices, apartments and parking. Commerzbank was able to consolidate most of its offices on this plot, rather than buy more land in Frankfurt's expensive financial district.
The building plan is a rounded equilateral triangle 60 meters wide. Three 52 x 131-ft-wide sections join to form the triangular structure with a central atrium.
On every level, one of the building's triangular sections is open as part of a "sky garden". This design offers workers in the remaining two sections to have an office either facing the city or facing each floor's atrium and garden space.
The sky gardens allow light to strike the interior face of each wing. Every office in the tower complies with the German building code requiring that all workers must be within 7.5 meters of a window. Illumination from natural light greatly reduces artificial lighting costs.
Vierendeel trusses attached to the three corner columns support each floor and sky garden, while allowing a column-free interior and bracing free skin.
The Commerzbank Tower was the first skyscraper in Germany to utilize steel as a main construction material.
German contractors made an alternate design proposal to the owners suggesting the use of concrete instead of steel. Although concrete construction would have been several million dollars cheaper, the change would have meant obstructing the sky gardens with columns.
Piling was driven 40 meters to untouched bedrock (buildings in Frankfurt are normally founded upon a 30 meter layer of clay over bedrock). The mat was placed in a 7.5 meter deep excavation and varies from 2.5 to 4.5 meters in thickness. There are 111 piles concentrated in clusters under each of the Tower's columns.
To limit settlement of Commerzbank's existing 30-story building a few meters away, the contractors excavated, drove piles and cast the heavy substructure one corner at a time.

http://mywebpage.netscape.com/rotpics01/commerz01.jpeg
http://www.josef-gartner.de/referenzen/images/commerzbankfrankfurt.jpg
http://mywebpage.netscape.com/rotpics01/commerz02.jpeg
http://mywebpage.netscape.com/rotpics01/commerz03.jpeg
http://mywebpage.netscape.com/rotpics01/commerz04.jpeg
http://mywebpage.netscape.com/rotpics01/commerz05.jpeg
http://mywebpage.netscape.com/rotpics01/commerz06.jpg

I absolutely love this buliding! The design looks fairly distinct. Is it still Europe's tallest?

BTW, I gave it a 9/10

Germany's best. Possibly Europes best. Not sure if it's the tallest in Europe. 8/10:)

it is Europe's tallest...

Looks nice, nothing special

7/10 :)

Nothing special? Ever seen the skygardens in the tower!? And the air transportation?! This is for sure the best ecological skyscraper in Europe, Swiss RE will be great too (same architect, Norman Foster).

a 10 for me!

Europes tallest and one of the most economical buildings in the world.

Very unique that it has 9 gardens in the building on certain parts of the building, and the height of it's roof compared to it's structural tip.

9/10

8.5. Not too shabby.

8, i like it

from far off it looks great i love it, tends to look a bit cheap close up though

but still a 9

Great tower with a truely european touch. Like the height variations, the spire. A one off.
9/10

I like the idea of the garden in the Commerzbank, but I don't like how it gets attention just because it is "Europe's Tallest". I'd give it 8.5 out of 10

By request...

http://www.lehigh.edu/ctbuh/bom_com_graphics/com1.jpg

http://www.lehigh.edu/ctbuh/bom_com_graphics/com3.jpg

http://www.lehigh.edu/ctbuh/bom_com_graphics/com5.jpg

http://www.lehigh.edu/ctbuh/bom_com_graphics/com4.jpg

Great design let down by that awful antennae 9/10

Innovative and it works visually. I don't care for the red/white spire but that's for aviation. Someone said this looks quite European, for some reason it looks more Japanese to me.

8.5/10

10/10 Beautiful Building, good for the envirment, one of my top 10 buildings

This building was designed to be the most ecologically-friendly high-rise, and they succeed pretty well. The interior gardens are fantastic.
9

My admiration for this structure is purely in the environmental philosophies of it. Great ideas and most likely one hell of a pleasant atmosphere inside for the day-to-day workers.

8.5.

7.5/10

Interesting exterior, amazing interior. If this building was shorter though, it would have looked ugly.

dont like the goofy spire and top . . but the rest is quite stunning . . 8/10

It can have all the skygardens and fancy lifts it wants, it looks a bit 'plastic'. Not a patch on Messeturm which is far, far superior.
8/10

wonderful building. one of fosters best.

my favourite tower in europe until swiss re is completed. but its v close between those two..

This building just looks odd to me.

8/10

8/10 - It would have been more like a 6/10, except for the gardens and that amazing atrium. The shape, with the bulk of the building seeming to be held up by the large columns, is interesting, but it doesn't have that much height, the facade could use more detailing or a different color or something, and that antenna on top of the highest section of the roof is simply awkward. On the other hand, I'm not sure if making the other columns as tall would have helped...
That garden idea is one I'd like to see a lot more of; it sounds like a perfect way to make buildings, especially big ones, more user-friendly.

I gave this one a 10/10 as well to to make a statement that when judging these buildings there is so much more to it then just the facade. This is one of the few buildings that tries to be so much more then just some facaded stack of floors. Bravo!

it looks more like an Asian skyscraper than anything...the indentions on the facade are distracting...at least if it led to some setbacks it would be more pleasing to look at...but the atrium & gardens do make it unique....8/10.

I don't like this one. It looks awkward and I hate the spire.

yes, Europe's best 9.5:okay:

wow very very nice building , awesome building:D

I'm not much of a fan of this one... I just don't like that spire much. Anyways ->7.5/10

8.5/10

one of europe's best!!

the 'green' aspect of this building is great (and ahead of its time). as a visionary building i would give it high marks... but it think that the exterior is way too over rated. 6/10.

That is an awesome building 8.5/10.

The best building I ever seen
10/10

the skyline would look boring without it



http://hometown.aol.de/FWVONGOETZ/skyline5.jpg

9/10

The design outside AND inside are fanstastic!
9.0/10

It's nice and unique, but kinda weird and akward.

7

Its more mechanical then artistic...so a 7/10 will be fair?

6.5 I think it's a rather goofy building... but it has some interesting aspects... like the atrium

I don't like it, it looks like a giant uneven ladder and an unsympathetic -if not cheap- way of becoming the tallest (in Europe).

One of the most daring architecture in skyscrapers we have seen.. Good suff.. Plus, it frames Frankfurt's skyline well! :)

8.5/10

so my vote was the 100st and i gave full points! 10/10

If We talking about the gorgeousness, Commerzbank Zentral is the bestest of the best...she has this gracefully splendid glorious phenomenon figure....10/10

8.5. I love the height but the design....:ohno:

3/10 I can see this thing everyday, it's boring

One of Europes finest! 9/10

9

Like it!

7/10, It's nice looking but not the whoaaaa kind of type.
And yes it's Europe's tallest.

As i was ten years i asked when its gonna to be completed for the next five years. You know what i mean. But now, after i saw
the atrium and the beautiful tower from the top of Main Tower
i must say this tower is one of the most impressive buildings of all
time! Greets from Worms Pop of 84 000 45 miles from Frankfurt

this one is really nice, though i like messeturm alot better, 8

9.0.... I like it for the same reasons as others. That's an awesome skyline shot!

6.5/10 not my like really.


ps, i forgot what i really voted for it, but i would give it 6.5 right now :bleep:

8/10

Good, except for the spire.

Wow, I like it! 9/10 :okay:

I dont like this tower, my least favourite tower. It looks chunky and I don't like the antenna.
5/10

9/10, the height yards are a great thing.

7.5/10 ! :)

9.5/10


I love this one.

9/10

This building is nice i give 9/10

I like this building, a lot! 9/10

I don’t know
Cement and dark steal looking windows
Not really some thing I would want to see or take photos of my self
Or even want in my home town
You guys can keep it

7/10

9/10
Great tower very futuristic!
My favorite building in the continent of Europe.

The best of Europe,nearly time 9,5/10

Unique design. The best tower in Europe IMO. 9/10

from an environmentalist or a futurist point of view, this building would be awesome, but im neither, and i'll give it a 7.5 cuz this is too high tech looking for me

Simply the best in Europe! I love Foster's archtecture.
10

9/10
The building is great.

I'll give it 7/10. I kinda like it. :)

distinctive, not simply an encased stack of floors. a beautiful building inside and out.:) 9.5/10

9.5/10

its beautiful but its still rough in some places

9/10

When I think of the best skyscrapers in Europe, I think of SwissRe, Tower 42, 1 Canada Square ..... and this.

8.5/10

5.5/10

I'm sorry but I've never seen what the fuss about this bldg is. If I didn't know any better, I'd think it was a fancy hospital. Way too wide, too- would look better w/more floors. I think because it is in Europe, it is seen as something special. Wouldn't even notice this one if it were in a different NA/SE Asian city.

8.5. I love the height but the design....:ohno:9.5 I love the design but the height...well I don't care. :)

7.5/10

Points in ingenuity and interior. I like the light in there. The facade is good, except for the indentations. Shape makes me think of a large building, but a skyscraper doesnot come to mind. Still I like the shape somewhat. Its interesting, and unusual, and if the building were as tall as the spire, it would work better. As spires go this isnt too bad, fits the building.

Unique configuration, with the cores on the three corners, and a central atrium with spiralling gardens. It has a very modern look to it. The antenna caps it off nicely. 8/10

Should have been taller!

9/10
There's just something special about this building

Europes tallest and one of the most economical buildings in the world.

Europe's most economical and ecological. And the tallest and most distinct and most beautiful. 10/10.

although it's in my country i don't like it! 5.5

Hmmmm, very interesting and I like it. 7.5/10

http://skyscraperpage.com/gallery/data/627/4023110_1067.jpg

http://skyscraperpage.com/gallery/data/627/4023111_1103.jpg

http://skyscraperpage.com/gallery/data/627/4023110_1080.jpg

Definitely one of Europe's best scrapers. :yes:

8/10

7/10

This is one of my favourite tower in Europe 8/10

Interesting. 7/10.

i must agree, it is interesting, but it doesn't look that cool. it seems to me that it looks like a building with chunks missing out of it, therefore i'll rate it poorly...

final vote - 6/10 :)

It's reasonably good looking but the height is a cheat. However, great technology. 8/10

This is a beaut. 9/10

One of the best in Europe! 8.5/10

7/10

The kind of building Frankfurt lives for. Fits the city perfectly, so a 9.5/10.

It looks way too random. The different parts of the building don't fit together well.

5/10

I know i'm swimming upstream,but i don't like this building the gardens are a nice feature but that spire ruins it,it looks like it's still under construction!

Some very good ideas.
It's ruined by the poor cladding, and the ill-proportioned storey blocks, not to mention the disastrous top. I can't imagine why they stretched the structure so high if not for a massive height cheat.
4.

I'm gonna be a party pooper and say that this building is downright ugly. As is often the case with height-cheats, the spire looks totally out of place. The colors are both badly matched and badly laid-out. The setbacks are awkward. The height is inappropriate for the aesthetic design. Not good at all.

I admire the environmental thought that went into it, but Europe deserves a much better tallest. 4/10

10.

8/10

8/10

The outside is strange with that sections ans the spire fits bad.Anyway it gets a high score due to its enviromental friendliness.

6.5
Seems a little better than average, even though I agree it is a good building with good ideas that marks the Frankfurt skyline. However it just doesn't quite strike me

9/10

Yellow lighting makes it decent. 5.

nice 8/10

10.0
:drool:

8/10

I've always loved it.. Maybe the best one in Europe

10/10

Very strong design, 9/10

I like this design. Quite unique and stunning. 8.5/10.

8/10

6/10

dont like it. 6

6/10

9!

Nice, looks really good up close.

8.5 from me.

Really good. 9/10.

not bad
7.5

European classic
10/10

amazing building (except the antenna)
9/10

great and originally designe with and excellent facade

nice for europe. 9/10

It's enough interesting :okay:
8/10

this is one of the best tower in Europe

This building is ok I guess. I don't think the design is smashing, but it's nice. The antenna on top is a shame.
And this building is NOT Europe's tallest.

I have quickly looked up three other buildings which are taller, and one of them is the Eiffel Tower, which should be commonly known :)

Berliner Fernsehturm - Berlin (368)
Eiffeltower - Paris (300)
Olympiaturm - Munich (290m)

But yes, if you would solely look at commercial highrises, then this could be the tallest building I guess.

6.5/10. Not a huge fan of this.

:) 7/10

It looks oddly proportioned to me. 7/10

Nice tower 8/10

I don't like the top. 7/10.

8.5/10

6,5/10

Amazing! The best Foster's tower
9.5/10

6/10

9/10 :cheers:

7/10.

I like it 8/10

8.5/10

I don’t see what is so great about this building. It’s very famous but not that cool. Ya ya I know it’s the tallest in Europe but I’m not crazy about it. 7.0 for the height.

6.5 meh...

8/10

For it's inovation. 8

Nice looking, 8.5/10

8/10. One of Europe's top 10.

The Tower has 9 gardens inside! Each is 4 floors high!
http://homepages.fh-giessen.de/~hg14078/CommerzbankGarten1.jpg
On the 20th floor:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/90/Frankfurt.Commerbanktower.innenhof.wmt.jpg/800px-Frankfurt.Commerbanktower.innenhof.wmt.jpg
35th floor:
https://www.commerzbank.de/cfapps/coldf/files/presse/downloads/25/35_og_000014_2.jpg
7th floor
https://www.commerzbank.de/cfapps/coldf/files/presse/downloads/25/7_og_000016_2.jpg
39th floor:
https://www.commerzbank.de/cfapps/coldf/files/presse/downloads/25/39_og_000023_2.jpg

7,5/10 interesting

8/10

innovative design but exterior isnt that great....7.5/10

8/10 just for intrestings decisions of interior...the exterior is wehhhhh....too much futuristic for me...

One of my favorite skyscrapers. Way different and much more interesting design than the traditional box-shape buildings.

6/10 i dont like the top.

The absolute best design in skyscrapers today. I mean the interior with the sky gardens and inner atrium. amazing. but the outside looks somewhat sixtish and robotic. for the inside. a strong 10/10. for the outside, 8/10. and thats being kind. the outside could have been much nicer.

Nice tower, with the gardens inside. 9/10

Amazing pix! Awesome project!
Econfriendly and harmonizing buiilding!

9/10!!!

9/10.

8,5/10

7/10...........

9/10

9/10

9/10

I love this building. 10+1/10

9,5/10
The best skyscraper in Europe (Rondo 1 is on the same first place). A 10/10 is by me only reserved for: BOC, IFC and Chrysler Building.

The tallest in Europe and has a great shape. It makes I'll give 9,5/10

6/10

Great design

like the inside gardens and the original design but its a bit fat 7.5/10

I don't know ... there is good parts on this tower, and some bad. 8/10

germany's best, i love it 9.5/10

7.5/10 ok

9/10

It looks nice in its location as well.. very cool.. 9.5/10

5.5/10

Not a good design for a city such as Frankfurt.

6/10 im not a huge fan...but it's tall

I went to the top of this as I knew someone who could take me there without paying which was cool. It is a beautiful building and the way it is designed is just amazing with its own eco-friendly air con system and the centre of the building being hollow. 9/10

9/10

7/10

8/10

9/10

8/10
;)

9/10

More pictures:
http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d101/Erebus555/Frankfurt%2006/DSCF1475.jpg
http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d101/Erebus555/Frankfurt%2006/DSCF1430.jpg

This was the tallest in Europe until that one in Moscow.

9.5/10. I like the way it glows at night.

8 / 10

Not impressed.

6.5/10

antena on top is too oversized, that said, it is a great tower
9/10

3/10

Looks like a factory.

9/10

3/10

Looks like a factory.

you has no taste :sleepy:

some new pics taken by me:

http://i13.tinypic.com/2e4lszt.jpg

http://i11.tinypic.com/302p1sk.jpg

http://i16.tinypic.com/2u6lpwk.jpg

4 / 10

Yawn.

3.5 /10

3/10...not something I'd like in my city.

:ohno:

9,5/10

I seriously do not know what to make of this building.
7.7?

serves as a nice pinnacle for the CBD

not to make excuses for it......as the outside of this building is dreadful. BUT, the inside is fantastic and takes into consideration on a large scale the people that work in it. the inside is just incredible. german law say that it's workers must be (x)ft. from windows at all times.......this makes for very interesting designs and very slender buildings......foster made this building look big even though it really isn't......he's a genius.......but the outside could use some work norm...........8

2 / 10

not my type.

beautiful pic berti:)

9.5/10 .One of the better of the modern buildings built recently,in a most deserving city.I need to visit again(last=1993).

10/10

fits perfects into Frankfurts Skyline :)

http://img123.imageshack.us/img123/3851/kopievon3109110066c565fzs9.jpg

great pic

10/10

fits perfects into Frankfurts Skyline :)

No, it doesn't. The picture is nice but the building is not. Moreover you aren't really talking about the building but how it's lit at night, which is completely irrelevant as far as the architectural design of the building is concerned.

:cheer: :cheer: :cheer: :cheer: :cheer: :cheer: :cheer: :cheer: :cheer: :cheer: you tell em' berti.......:lol: :master:

6/10

5.5 / 10

a mediocre design.

It's huge! One of Europe's bests

5 / 10

5 / 10

I would have thought that the Germans had a higher standard for highrises than this.

8.5 nice color scheme.

6.5 - b o r i n g :)

10/10 I love this building. It's in my top 3 for europe :)

Definately the most stunnig skyscraper in frankfurt at night... 9,5/10

9/10

8/10

Along with Swiss Re, and Tour EDF this is Europe's best tower.

One of Foster's best.

10/10 my favorite building in germany

one of the best skyscraper designs I've ever seen. 10/10

5.5/10

10/10 my favorite building in germany

also my favourite

8/10

7/10

Nothing looks better by night

9/10.

8.5/10

quite nice.

Has a certain presence, but the red and white antenna is a bit odd. 8/10

Lovely.
8/10

looks like a hospital 4.5/10

Has a certain presence, but the red and white antenna is a bit odd. 8/10

Yes. It was in fact not part of the original design.

I do not really like this one BUT everytime i see the building a have to keep looking at it. So a 7,5/10

7/10

7/10

it's ok 6/10

10/10! Together with the Messeturm in Frankfurt Europe's proud! :)

not too bad...looks better at night.

I give 7.5/10

7.5

nice height, ugly design

9 - not bad - but dont like the top.

:) Very Nice! 8,5

A nice building. 8/10

This building is the best in Europe, 9,5/10

8/10

nice, tall but i don't like the spire 9/10

8,5/10

Sticks out, much!

8.5/10

from far off it looks great i love it, tends to look a bit cheap close up though

but still a 9

Thats what I think. Its probably the most important tower for frankfurts skyline.

but 9/10

10/10

10/10

8/10

5/10

9/10. One of Germany's finest skyscrapers!