Timber Pioneer two-thirds leased to Universal Investment

Frankfurt am Main (OTS) –

Universal Investment rents approx. 10,000 m2 in Frankfurt’s first wood-hybrid office building
Timber Pioneer offers a total of more than 15,000 m2 in Frankfurt’s first wood-hybrid office
Transfer to Universal Investment as anchor tenant in Q2/2024, lease term 12 years

Less than four months after the topping-out ceremony, UBM Development and Paulus Immobilien, who are building the Timber Pioneer in a 75:25 joint venture, signed a lease for almost 10,000 m2 with Universal Investment. Universal Investment will use the space with around 750 employees. “The letting shows that our change of strategy is working,” explains Martin Löcker, COO of UBM Development AG, “UBM is one step closer to our goal of becoming the European market leader in the development of wooden buildings.”

The Timber Pioneer is being built in Frankfurt’s Europaviertel in the immediate vicinity of the FAZ Tower, which was also built by the two partners, as Frankfurt’s first office building in timber-hybrid construction. The 8-storey Timber Pioneer offers 14,100 square meters of office space and around 1,500 square meters of retail space. The building is not only a green building, but also a smart office and offers users future-oriented workplace options, from individual offices to open-space concepts. The lease with Universal Investment has a term of 12 years.

“Universal Investment is the fastest growing capital management company (KVG) in Germany, so we invest in our team accordingly. With the New Work concept, which we will implement at our future headquarters in the Timber Pioneer, we are also strengthening our profile as an innovative employer. What also speaks in favor of the Timber Pioneer is that, as a wood-hybrid building, it meets the highest sustainability criteria and therefore fits in perfectly with our clear sustainability strategy,” says Michael Reinhard, CEO of Universal Investment. Universal Investment was advised on the lease by JLL.

“With this rental, the Timber Pioneer is sending a clear signal in difficult times,” emphasizes Bertold Wild, CEO of UBM Development Deutschland GmbH, “and it is the successful start for an entire Timber Family in Germany.”

Christian Paulus, Managing Director of Paulus Immobilien GmbH, points out that “… not only the excellent location, but also the innovative and sustainable construction offer the tenant and his employees excellent conditions, which investors as customers will certainly appreciate .” In the near future, a subway line 5 stop in front of the door will ensure optimal connections to public transport.

Around 1,800 cubic meters of wood were used in the Timber Pioneer, in which around 1,800 tons of CO2 are bound. The intensive greening of the inner courtyard and roof terrace improves the urban microclimate. The e-mobility concept with sharing offers and e-charging stations also reduces CO2 emissions in the overall view of building use. Thanks to the resource-saving use of materials such as FSC-certified spruce wood, the shell of the office floors can be erected in an almost CO2-neutral manner. The industrially prefabricated composite elements have also significantly accelerated the construction work and reduced truck deliveries by a factor of 7.

UBM Development is one of the leading developers of timber construction projects in Europe. The strategic focus is on green building and smart offices in major cities such as Vienna, Munich, Frankfurt and Prague. The platinum rating from EcoVadis and the prime status from ISS ESG confirm the consistent focus on sustainability. With 150 years of experience, UBM offers all development services from a single source, from planning to marketing. The shares are listed on the Prime Market of the Vienna Stock Exchange, the segment with the highest transparency requirements.

Universal Investment has been active in Frankfurt since 1968 as a so-called master and service KVG. As a fund administrator, the company offers solutions for all asset classes to institutional investors such as pension funds or pension schemes and asset managers such as asset managers. As one of the very few providers in the Frankfurt fund location, the company is also very successful internationally because it offers very customer-specific B2B solutions. More than 1,700 employees at locations in Frankfurt, Luxembourg, Dublin, London, Paris, Hamburg and Kraków look after over 2,000 funds with assets of over 975 billion euros.