BUS2Talk with Marvin Bratke

Guest: Marvin Bratke, Managing Partner, Urban Beta

In places where there is a transport interchange or vehicles are recharged, a user-centred design requirement is that people feel comfortable and enjoy being there. “Mobility hubs of the future should be places that people come to by choice rather than necessity“, says Marvin Bratke, architect and one of the four founders of Urban Beta. In order to achieve this, Urban Beta has designed the BetaPort Mobility Hub which, as a single or multi-storey pavilion, combines a lounge, café, work spaces and charging points.

One of its features is the BetaPort System, a sustainable, circular timber-frame building system for structures in various categories. Together with Kerstin Kube-Erkens and Totinia Hörner, Marvin Bratke talks about why, in his view, the building industry needs to switch from a linear to a circular economy. He describes the individual lifespan of buildings and components and explains why a lot of money is currently being wasted on having to retrofit buildings due to new requirements. “We separate the components from the building’s life cycle, which allows us to create buildings that in future can offer flexibility“, says Bratke. He talks about sustainability as a social responsibility, interim solutions and the conflicts between far-sighted planning on the one hand and political cycles on the other. He says “we need systems that from the outset take the future into account.“

In the latest episode of the BUS2BUS podcast you can find out more about circular solutions, mobility hubs of the future and the difference between competitive and networked thinking.

A note for all non German-speaking listeners: this episode is only available in German.