Sauerbruch Hutton Wins Bendlerblock Expansion Contract
The German defence ministry has selected Berlin-based architecture firm Sauerbruch Hutton, working with ST raum a Landschaftsarchitekten, to redevelop the Bendlerblock, its headquarters complex in Berlin-Tiergarten. The contract follows a design competition in which two teams were awarded joint first prize in December 2025.
The other first-prize team, architecture firm Henn with SINAI Landschaftsarchitekten, was also asked to revise its entry before the final negotiated procedure. The ministry said both finalists had to meet high security demands and integrate their designs appropriately into the existing complex. Sauerbruch Hutton and ST raum a ultimately received the commission.
The project covers new development and an urban reorganisation of the site on Reichpietschufer and Hildebrandstraße. The winning design centres a parade square on the axis of the state guest staircase and the Bundeswehr memorial, flanks it with two concave building volumes to the north and south, and uses a circular courtyard motif in three variations. The planning requirements include resource-saving, energy-efficient and sustainable construction.
Why the Bendlerblock Competition Went to a Second Round
Why the Bendlerblock Competition Went to a Second Round
The result — two equal first prizes in December and then a negotiated procedure — suggests the ministry deliberately avoided picking a single winner at the competition stage. The extra round let it test how each design handled the brief's hardest parts: security for a working government ministry, and integration into a sensitive, centrally located complex. The final evaluation cited functionality, security compliance, energy quality and overall design as the decisive criteria.
How Sauerbruch Hutton's Design Reorders the Site
The winning scheme's emphasis on a central parade square treats the Bendlerblock as a ceremonial and urban whole rather than a simple extension. Placing that square on the axis between the state guest staircase and the Bundeswehr memorial gives the complex a clear public front, while the two concave volumes frame the space. The circular courtyard motif, repeated in three variants, is the design's main architectural signature; the ministry judged the revised version convincing on all four evaluation criteria.
What the Ministry Has Not Yet Disclosed
The announcement contains no budget, construction start or completion date, so the scale of the investment remains unknown. What is clear is that sustainability and energy efficiency are written into the planning brief, signalling that the ministry treats these as core requirements for the project, not optional extras.
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