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Plattenbau (plural Plattenbauten) is the German word for a building whose structure is constructed of large, prefabricated concrete slabs. The word is a compound of Platte (in this context: panel) and Bau (building). Although Plattenbauten are often considered to be typical of East Germany, the prefabricated construction method was used extensively in West Germany and elsewhere, particularly in public housing (see tower block). In English the building method is also called large-panel system building or LPS.

In East Germany, Plattenbau areas have been designated as Neubaugebiet (“New development area”). Virtually all new residential buildings since the 1960s were built in this style, as it was a quick and relatively cheap way to solve the country's severe housing shortage, which had been caused by wartime bombing raids and the large influx of German refugees from further east. There were several common plattenbau designs. The most common series was the P2, followed by the WBS 70. the WHH GT 18, and Q3A. The designs were flexible and could be built as towers or rows of apartments of various heights.

Plattenbau apartments were considered highly desirable in East Germany, the main alternative being overcrowded, deteriorating prewar housing, often with wartime damage still visible. Since reunification a combination of decreasing population, renovation of older buildings, and construction of modern alternative housing has led to high vacancy rates, with some estimates placing the number of unoccupied units at around a million. Many plattenbau apartments were built in giant settlements, often on the edge of cities (such as Marzahn and Hellersdorf in Berlin and Halle-Neustadt), making them inconveniently located.

While many plattenbau apartments have been renovated to a high standard, some are being torn down, although a lack of funds means many have been left to become derelict. Because of the modular construction some are dismantled and moved to a new location.

The "Innen Deutsche Grenze"was the name the people in former West Germany gave to the border between East (DDR or GDR) and West (DBR) Germany.

Dog runs (Kettenlaufanlagen) were installed on high-risk sectors of the border. The dogs were generally were chained to steel cables up to 100 metres (330 ft) long. The dogs were occasionally turned loose in temporary pens adjoining gates or damaged sections of the fence. By the 1970s, there were 315 dog runs with 460 dogs. This figure increased steadily until a total length of 71.5 kilometres (44.4 mi) of dog runs had been installed by mid-1989, with 2,500 dogs employed as watchdogs and another 2,700 so-called "horse dogs.

Around a thousand observation bunkers also stood along the length of the border. Most common was a small concrete bunker known as an "earth bunker" (Erdbunker), usually recessed into a depression in the ground with a view along the guard road and border fence. It was constructed from two base sections, each 0.8 metres (2.6 ft) high with a cross-section of 1.8 by 1.8 metres (5.9 × 5.9 ft). It terminated in a third section that had two firing ports in the front side and one or two on each of the other sides. The roof was a separate component nesting on top of the concrete bunker, which could accommodate up to two soldiers.