Building environmentally friendly labs

The Max Delbrück Center has recently completed construction of a new Demonstrator Lab as a testbed to reduce the environmental impact of biomedical research. The insights gained will be applied to all new building renovations across the center.

 

In November, two research groups finally moved into the Max Delbrück Center’s Demonstrator lab on campus Buch. The opening marked the start of an ambitious experiment: The lab is a testbed for new technical solutions aimed at making biomedical research more sustainable and climate-friendly.

The goal is to cut energy consumption, use less resources, and save around 3,000 metric tons of CO₂ annually. The Demonstrator Lab marks the first major step toward refurbishing the entire building. “The team can now assess whether our projected savings actually materialize,” says Ralf Streckwall, Head of Technical Facility Management. The researchers will provide feedback based on their day-to-day experience – creating a continuous learning process. The insights gained will inform a broader renovation strategy.

Outdated systems, high consumption

Occupying 10,700 square meters and housing about half of our research groups, the Max Delbrück House is our largest laboratory facility. The building’s infrastructure is outdated and energy-inefficient – its last renovation was almost 25 years ago. It consumes around 8,000 megawatt-hours annually – 80 percent of which goes to air conditioning (HVAC) systems. That’s comparable to the energy used by several hundred households. Each year, our center also emits approximately 20,000 metric tons of CO₂. Statistically speaking, anyone working there effectively doubles their personal carbon footprint. Our goal is to have net-zero operational greenhouse gas emissions by 2038.

Beyond reducing consumption, the interdisciplinary project team who designed the new lab also reconfigured the building’s entire energy system. The goal is to operate the building using renewable energy sources. The new energy concept includes heat pumps and smart heat and cooling recovery solutions. The Max Delbrück Center is breaking new ground here – developing scalable solutions that could serve as a model for others.

Reduced need for ventilation and reusing furniture

Ventilation systems have great potential for energy savings. Under Germany’s Technical Rules for Hazardous Substances, labs are typically supplied with 25 cubic meters of air per hour per square meter of floor space. This guideline was created long ago when laboratory work with hazardous substances was more common. Moreover, a large-scale hazard assessment at the Max Delbrück Center found a significant decline in the use of hazardous substances by our researchers. DNA, for example, is no longer extracted using phenol, chloroform, or butanol – harmful organic solvents – but with silica-gel-based methods that require only small amounts of alcohol-based solutions.

However, the Technical Rule for Hazardous Substances does allow for reducing ventilation rates, provided employee safety is ensured. This has opened the possibility of flexible ventilation control, reduced air exchange rates, and demand-driven adjustments – all of which are currently being measured and evaluated in the Demonstrator Lab and will continue through 2026.

Sustainability is also built into the renovation process itself. Many lab benches with stoneware countertops and solvent cabinets in the Max Delbrück House were still in good condition. These have been inventoried, catalogued, and reused where possible.

Research teams at in the Demonstrator Lab and at the center in general are also learning how to make their day-to-day work more sustainable by joining programs like “My Green Lab” and the Laboratory Efficiency Assessment Framework (LEAF) from University College London.

A knowledge hub for sustainable research construction

The Demonstrator Lab is not just a milestone for the Max Delbrück Center – it serves as a model for the broader research landscape. Since 2023, the Helmholtz Network for Climate-Compatible Building (HKB), headquartered at the center, has been leading knowledge transfer efforts. In 2024, the HKB published guidelines on energy-efficient ventilation in research labs – addressing one of the Demonstrator Lab’s key topics. Its recent reports also highlight model projects for reusing lab furniture.

“It’s been fascinating to see how the demonstrator project has developed,” says Michael Hinz, who was part of the original planning team and is now deputy head of the HKB. “The Max Delbrück Center’s renovation project could truly become a blueprint for sustainable research buildings in Germany and beyond.”

 

Reducing energy demand – and integrating renewables

The project team is pursuing three key strategies to cut energy use:

  1. Lab restructuring: Fume hoods and hazardous materials cabinets are concentrated in fewer rooms. This limits the need for high air exchange rates across the entire space.
  2. More efficient ventilation: Localized extraction directly at lab benches increases effectiveness, while enclosures around equipment reduce the room volume requiring ventilation. These measures could cut lab ventilation demand by up to 30 percent – while also improving safety.
  3. Optimizing HVAC systems: Lower air velocities and improved ductwork designs help reduce energy use. The team is also working to eliminate energy and air losses within the system.

 

Further information

 

 

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