NWZ Nordwestzentrum

The cons­truc­tion of three glass eleva­tors with self-supporting shaft scaf­fol­ding in the newly desi­gned Nord­west­zen­trum in Frank­furt am Main in 1988 was already a follow-up order. A year earlier, Thoma had already built and installed an unusual glass elevator for the multi­func­tional district center, which is essen­ti­ally a free-running, octa­gonal glass cabin on a hydraulic ram connec­ting three floors. 

Fabrik NummerFactory Number #1424-26
AuftraggeberClient FAAG Frankfurter Aufbau AG
BauherrBuilder KGN Kommanditgesellschaft Nordtrakt
FachingenieurSpecialist FAAG Frankfurter Aufbau AG
ArchitektenArchitects BOP Jakob Gesellschaft für Bauoptimierung
BaujahrYear of Construction 1988
Anzahl der AnlagenNumber of installations 3
TragkraftLoad capacities 630kg
HaltestellenStops 3, 2
GeschwindigkeitSpeeds 0,5 m/s
AntriebsartDrive types hydraulic drive, ram directly under the cabin
NutzungsartType of use glass elevator
GebäudeartType of building Einkaufszentren
AuftragsartType of order Neuanlage
BesonderheitenSpecial features hydraulic drive under cabin for space optimization / execution according to special customer specifications / retrofit of a glass elevator in existing building / self-supporting steel-glass frame for the shaft

In the course of refur­bis­hing the complex, which was built in 1968, we built the three other instal­la­tions on behalf of Frank­furter Aufbau AG (FAAG). To save space, these eleva­tors are also driven hydrau­li­cally by a ram directly under the cabs. However, they travel in a closed, glazed shaft. They also connect several levels; one of the eleva­tors leads to the station of the U1 and U9 subway lines, among others. 

Nach der Eröff­nung Ende der 1960er-Jahre waren im Nord­west­zen­trum rund 150 

After its opening at the end of the 1960s, the Nord­west­zen­trum housed around 150 stores, specialty stores, medical prac­tices and service provi­ders. The center can be reached via a subway station, an internal bus station and a multi-lane road that runs as a ring around the 390-meter-long oval concrete island. 

After a change of owner­ship, the Northwest Center was rebuilt from 1986 by the new owners after a change of owner­ship, the new owners rede­si­gned the Northwest Center along the lines of U.S. shop­ping malls and gave it huge, curved glass roofs. The rede­sign even won an industry archi­tec­tural award for the “world’s best shop­ping center redesign.”

After 1992, the complex was expanded once again, inclu­ding a new buil­ding with a hotel, fitness center and adven­ture pool.