General contractor
Construction is becoming increasingly complex - and very few clients and planners are familiar with the special features and legal framework conditions for temporary buildings. As specialists, we support you in realising the construction in a sophisticated, creative and economical way. As a general contractor, we are at your side from A to Z. We organise the construction process as simply as possible for you - regardless of whether you are buying or renting the building. This includes the delivery and assembly of the room units, the fit-out on site and the coordination of all the necessary trades. The end result is the turnkey handover of the temporary building on the agreed fixed date.
We achieve the best construction results if you involve us as early as possible. We are happy to advise and support you right from the needs assessment, design planning, the building application process and the foundations. Whether renting or buying - our customer service is always "included". If you have any questions or problems with the building, we are always there for you. We are happy to offer services such as regular building checks or maintenance contracts on request
At your side from A to Z
FAQ on building permits
By definition, a structure is immobile because it cannot be moved - or can only be moved on fixed tracks. This does not apply to FAGSI's containerised buildings, as they can be dismantled and moved.
Even if container buildings are suitable and designed to be repeatedly erected and dismantled, they are not considered "temporary structures" under the building regulations of the federal states, but rather "structures" consisting of several office containers or residential containers, for example. They are therefore subject to authorisation and a building permit is required to set up the office containers or residential containers.
It is also completely irrelevant whether a container stands on its own foundation or on a merely compacted or paved surface, whether it is firmly connected to the foundation, anchored in the ground or simply set up. The reason for this is that containers - even if they are not constructed like a building in the conventional sense, but "only" erected - are assessed according to their intended use as defined by the building regulations of the individual federal states.
However, container buildings - whether as individual containers or joined together - can be categorised as so-called temporary buildings under certain circumstances. The decisive factor here is primarily the period of use. A classic example of temporary buildings is construction site equipment. This term covers all production, transport, storage and other facilities required for logistics, infrastructure and stockpiling on the construction site. This also includes containerised facilities for accommodation, break rooms, sanitary facilities, site offices or storage.
Because these container facilities are only set up temporarily, i.e. exclusively for the duration of the construction site, planning permission is not required, but an application for use and installation is usually still necessary.
Other examples of temporary structures are containers that are used for cultural events, sports or other major events - whether as accommodation, kitchen, refrigeration, sanitary or other storage containers. As these types of containers are only used for very short periods of time, they do not require planning permission.
According to a legal opinion by the Federal Constitutional Court, the competence for building regulations lies with the individual federal states, each of which has its own state building regulations (LBO). A model building code (MBO), which is constantly updated by the Conference of Building Ministers, in which all federal states are represented, is intended to standardise the state building codes subject to state law. These model building regulations form the basis for the building regulations of the individual federal states. This is why the state building regulations often only differ in details, which can, however, be decisive.
We provide an overview here so that you can find out which state building regulations are relevant for your project. Simply click on the federal state in which you would like to build and we will guide you to the applicable state building regulations. You will also find the building application form there.
Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (LBauO M-V)
North Rhine-Westphalia (BauO NRW)
The state building regulations stipulate exactly which technical verifications must be provided in order for planning permission to be granted. This includes the statics of the building, derived from the type statics of the containers, proof of stability including the fire resistance duration of load-bearing components, proof of preventive fire protection, if necessary in the form of a fire protection concept, proof of sound insulation, thermal insulation and energy efficiency.
In some regions, proof of snow load or wind load may also be required. Compliance with clearance areas, boundary and building lines and possibly even nature and tree protection must also be verified. Which verifications are required depends largely on the planned service life of the container building. We will be happy to advise you and provide you with all the necessary building application documents.
Before building, a building application must be submitted in order to obtain the necessary planning permission. The building application must be prepared by the building owner. This requires the submission of a number of documents. What these are in a specific case can be found in the building regulations of the federal state in which the building is to be constructed.
To prepare the building application documents, the building owner must commission a so-called authorised designer. This design author must provide proof of expertise and experience. He is responsible for the completeness and feasibility of his design. This involves compliance with the requirements of the state building regulations in conjunction with the Building Submission Ordinance. The author of the design is also responsible if he has not created the design planning himself, but authorises it with his signature.
According to the model building regulations, anyone who
- is authorised to use the professional title "architect",
- is entered in the list of persons authorised to submit building plans maintained by a chamber of engineers,
- is authorised to use the professional title "interior designer" for structural alterations to buildings associated with the professional role of interior designer, or
- is authorised to use the professional title "engineer" in the fields of architecture, structural engineering or civil engineering, has worked as an engineer for at least two years and is an employee of a legal entity under public law, for official activities.
The authorised designer signs the documents and the building application forms together with the client. The building application must then be submitted by the client in writing and in triplicate to the lower building supervisory authority - usually the local authority.
In addition to the building application, the building drawings, the cadastral site plan, a building description as well as an operating description, various calculations for the building, technical evidence and a drainage plan or drainage application must be submitted.
If you are building with FAGSI, we will support you and prepare all the documents required for the building application. If you are unsure about the building project or have individual questions, it may also make sense to submit a preliminary building enquiry before submitting a building application.
A preliminary building enquiry can be used to clarify whether a property can be built on as planned before a building application is submitted. A preliminary building enquiry can be submitted to the municipality or building authority in order to clarify in advance whether - or with what restrictions - the planned building project can be realised in principle and whether it is compatible with building law or the applicable development plans. Although the so-called preliminary building decision issued by the authority on this basis does not anticipate the decision on subsequent planning permission, it does provide the developer with more planning security.