Other types of buildings
A detailed case study describing the new low energy 'Atlantic Pavilion' in Portugal, which provides a large venue for a range of cultural and sporting events. The pavilion combines a number of low energy cooling techniques including natural ventilation, thermal mass and good shading. When compared to a more convention design, without these energy saving techniques, It is calculated that, a total energy savings of 36% in winter and 63% in summer is achieved. The shape and orientation of the building plays a key role in the passive design. The orientation was chosen to take advantage of solar radiation on the southern façade. This maximises exposure from the sun during the coldest time of the year and allows direct shadowing during the summer, saving energy usage.
The new Playhouse for the Danish Royal Theatre on the Copenhagen waterfront opened in February 2008. The energy and environmental objectives were:
- Reduction of energy consumption and CO2 emission related to cooling by 75 %
- Reduction of CO2 emission related to heat consumption and ventilation by 50 %
- Reduction of the CO2 embodied in the concrete by 26 %
A short review of an upper secondary school in Kristiansand, which is on the south coast of Norway. The building was completed in 2003, and has 9000 m2 of new floor space and 3600 m2 of refurbished space. It incorporates a hybrid ventilation system, and the building is predicted to use 40% less energy than a new school of conventional design.
A review of a lower secondary school in Fredrikstad, located on the east coast of Norway. The building was completed in January 2003, and has a gross floor area of 6865 m2. Careful attention has been given to the sustainability of the design, with materials selected for their embodied energy, maintenance, quality, costs, availability and ability to be recycled. Extensive use has been made of precast concrete for load bearing walls, and local stone has been used for the façade. The overall design has a high level of thermal mass and low energy consumption.
The Millennium Wing extension to the National Gallery of Ireland was opened in 2002. One of the features of the building, which has been described as "a showpiece of the highest quality of workmanship and craftsmanship that is available today", is its use of unpainted, unplastered walls. Constructed in reinforced concrete it is credited as perhaps the finest example of concrete in either Britain or Ireland. In addition to the excellent aesthetics of the concrete, it also helps enhance the natural lighting within the gallery, and provide a stable internal temperature which is particularly important for the paintings.
Courtesy of The Irish Concrete Federation
The Jubilee Library in Brighton has received numerous accolades for its approach to design and its 'green' performance. The building incorporates a combination of exposed cast in-situ concrete slabs in the central area, and exposed precast hollow core slabs in the perimeter rooms, heated and cooled by mechanical ventilation; a system typically referred to by the trade name 'Termodeck'.
Courtesy of The Concrete Centre and the British Cement Association
The school 'Lycée du Pic Saint-Loup' was designed in 2004 by the architect Pierre Tourre and his project manager Serge Sanchis, in accordance with a High Environmental Quality approach. This approach favours integration of a building into its environment, the use of local materials, as well as adaptation to the climate and comfort of use. The building's bioclimatic architecture is based on the principle of natural ventilation, combined with an in-situ concrete structure to secure good thermal inertia characteristics.
 |
 |
|
Photograph: Hervé Abbadie |
Photograph: Hervé Abbadie |
School building using the first bubble deck floor with concrete core activation.