Shaping tomorrow with a stroke of the pen

Becoming more sustainable step by step: Schneider is not alone in this aspiration. Committed people like architect Robert Klein are pursuing the same goal.

Achieve changes step by step

Faster. Higher. Further: For a long time, the hunt for superlatives knew no limits. This trend has not stopped at architecture either. In the process, it is often forgotten how great the impact of each individual building is on the environment. Stone, earth, metal, wood – human beings are not only taking resources away from nature, they are also taking more and more land for themselves. Climate resilience is therefore also imperative in architecture.

This describes the competence to deal with the consequences of climate change and the ability to keep learning. Sustainability is not understood as a state, but much more as an ongoing process. Changing something step by step: This is something that connects Schneider and the architect Robert Klein – as well as a large portion of pioneering spirit, courage and openness. Robert usually finds new approaches when he is out and about – what goes through his mind he puts down on paper: sketches, notes and he captures glimpses so that none of it is lost.

Some thought sustainability was a trend. Wrong. It is a necessity.

You can find out more about sustainability at Schneider here.

Clever solutions for complex problems

Always keep moving: physically and mentally, at work and in your free time. Standstill has never had a place in the life of the 42-year-old. Decide for yourself as far as possible, pursue your own passion and live out your own independence: This is exactly how Robert wanted to realise his career aspirations, which he has had since childhood. In his owner-managed office eleven architecture in Munich, he realises his ideas of building and living that correspond to the world of today.

"Building is a highly complex process, made even more complex by rules, regulations and the client's ideas," Robert explains. Construction plan, cadastral plan, connections for gas, water or telephone: This all has to be clarified in advance. This information then ends up on a flipchart - organised, structured, visible to all. When you stand in front of the finished building at the end, however, a feeling of pride quickly comes up: This is not made for the moment. This will be here for the next 100 years.

You can find our whiteboard markers here.

The best source of inspiration: life

How do you avoid getting stuck in rigid structures on the job? "Creativity and progress drive me... and my inquisitiveness," Robert explains with a laugh. Films, books, music and design also stimulate his thinking. The name of his architecture practice, for example, is a reference to the cult film "This is Spinal Tap", a mockumentary about a fictional heavy metal band from 1984. Normally, the scale on an electric guitar amplifier goes from zero to ten - in the film, the band uses equipment that goes up to eleven. "Up to eleven" became the pop cultural idiom of getting the maximum out of something.

"We still want that one more extra", he says, concretising the idea behind eleven architecture. In addition, there are other important influences such as the ten theses of good design by industrial designer Dieter Rams, which include the factors of authenticity, durability and environmental friendliness. "I am glad that the topic of sustainability is now slowly getting a bit of tailwind. That profit is no longer the only thing in the foreground, but smart solutions,” Robert tells us.

You can find our whiteboard markers here.

Thefeeling when you have mastered the challenge? Pride in your work.

Robert's preference

Here you can find Robert's favourite pen

Sustainability without loss of comfort

One of the most important heart and soul projects in Robert's career is his own house, where he was able to realise all his ideas about sustainable building. Few people are aware, for example, that sand is a finite resource. Without sand, however, there is no concrete. For this reason, Robert relies on approaches such as wood-hybrid construction, which combines the best properties of wood and concrete. And that is just one way of thinking about architecture differently.

"Sustainability becomes attractive when it is not associated with a loss of comfort," Robert is convinced. Having ideas and just starting with something: This is important – whether with sustainable building concepts or a pen made of biobased plastic. You have to start somewhere," Robert tells us. You have rarely felt more: Taking responsibility for the planet is not an individual struggle. It is a task that we all face together. Each in our own personal way.