Future Active House
Norway |
|
Future Active House
Norway |
|
Future Active House
Societies all over the world face the same challenges: to make the demands of modern life meet the need for protection of the environment, to make advanced technology integrate with good living conditions and closeness to nature.
Future Active House seeks to meet these challenges. Based on the Active House principles, the building is designed to be both a showcase of innovative solutions as well as a modern family home. The idea of creating such a building emerged as a collaborative project between Tore Ligaard as and VELUX A/S.
Tore Ligaard, founder and owner of the company bearing his name, was unsatisfied with the standard of energy-efficient buildings. In his opinion, they often sacrificed factors such as daylight and indoor air quality in order to meet the energy requirements.
”This was very much against my personal preference after nearly fifty years in the industry. Fresh air creates well-being as well as mental health. So the Active House principles seemed very appealing,“ he explains.
He soon brought together a team of partners who shared his views. Today, their visions have come true.
A number of manufacturers and suppliers have contributed to the Future Active House. Framtidens Aktivhus as, a subsidiary of the Ligaard Group, manages the construction; the VELUX Group, besides being the supplier of roof windows,sun screens, blinds and solar collectors, also gives its support by providing tools such as the VELUX Daylight Visualizer. NTNU, the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, provides advice and consultancy. Husbanken, the Norwegian State Housing Bank, supports the project financially.
“The Future Active House project is very much in line with our purpose: to encourage initiatives with high ambitions and creative solutions,” says Senior Advisor Gry Kongsli of Husbanken.
Her colleague Birger Jensen adds that private companies play an important role in the efforts to mainstream the use of environment- friendly solutions:
“Because they have their eye on the demands from the market, private companies can push progression forward”.
Location: Future Active House is located near Trondheim, Norway. The region is surrounded by mountains and located about 600 km from the Arctic Circle. The weather ranges from mild, light summers to winters of heavy snowfall and long nights. Trondheim is also a vibrant area, with a growing and young population. This all adds up to an excellent location for a project with the ambition to prove how energy efficiency is compatible with values of light, air and closeness to nature.
The plot of the Future Active House is on a south-facing mountainside in the village of Stjørdal. From the house, residents overlook the Trondheim fjord and enjoy proximity to golf courses, shopping centres and airport. Careful design and state-ofthe-art technology provide the house with a healthy and comfortable indoor climate, while the extensive use of windows allows residents to enjoy the benefits of daylight from all directions. Insulation, solar collectors and a compact design help keep the house’s energy consumption to a minimum. Vision: Solutions to share
Energy-efficient buildings present a number of challenges. Apparent solutions like extensive use of insulation and a southoriented window area can have negative consequences for the indoor climate and living environment. The Active House principles take a holistic view of the interaction between energy, indoor climate and environment. The aim is to show that energy efficiency is compatible with a healthy and comfortable living environment, and to create a home that enables the residents to make active use of the surrounding nature and local community.
The initiatives include:
- solar collectors on facades provide hot water and heating
- a combination of windows and climate control technology ensures natural ventilation, pleasant indoor temperatures and good air quality
- building materials that are mostly available through Do-It-Yourself outlets. Local and regional materials are preferred whenever possible. It is the aim of the project to show that the concept can be adapted to regional conditions
- extensive use of windows in both roof and walls enables the residents to enjoy the surrounding nature and make use of the daylight and solar heat.
Future Active House strives to create and test solutions that are applicable to new constructions as well as existing buildings. But if the solutions are going to have a wider impact, they need not only to be smart but also affordable and easy to operate. An important part of the Future Active House project is the systematic collection of data and user experiences in order to improve and evaluate the house and its use. Through guided tours, information material and mass media, the partners behind Future Active House will communicate the achieved knowledge of the project to the building industry and the wider public.
Vision: Solutions to share
Energy-efficient buildings present a number of challenges. Apparent solutions like extensive use of insulation and a southoriented window area can have negative consequences for the indoor climate and living environment. The Active House principles take a holistic view of the interaction between energy, indoor climate and environment. The aim is to show that energy efficiency is compatible with a healthy and comfortable living environment, and to create a home that enables the residents to make active use of the surrounding nature and local community.
The initiatives include:
- solar collectors on facades provide hot water and heating
- a combination of windows and climate control technology ensures natural ventilation, pleasant indoor temperatures and good air quality
- building materials that are mostly available through Do-It-Yourself outlets. Local and regional materials are preferred whenever possible. It is the aim of the project to show that the concept can be adapted to regional conditions
- extensive use of windows in both roof and walls enables the residents to enjoy the surrounding nature and make use of the daylight and solar heat.
Future Active House strives to create and test solutions that are applicable to new constructions as well as existing buildings. But if the solutions are going to have a wider impact, they need not only to be smart but also affordable and easy to operate. An important part of the Future Active House project is the systematic collection of data and user experiences in order to improve and evaluate the house and its use. Through guided tours, information material and mass media, the partners behind Future Active House will communicate the achieved knowledge of the project to the building industry and the wider public. A sustainable future is based on both the visions of today and the experiences of the past. Future Active House draws on traditional Norwegian architecture and modern solutions. The aim is to create a house in which both technology and atmosphere can serve as inspiration to the future. Welcome inside. Architecture: Nordic light
A house designed for the future should strive to be timeless; that is the vision of Geir Brendeland, one of the architects behind Future Active House. Together with colleague Olav Kristoffersen, he has developed and designed the house in close cooperation with energy consultants. The challenge was to create a house where architecture is added to energy efficiency, without sacrificing the qualities of light, air and interaction with the environment.
“We wanted the house to have a strict, modern, Nordic attitude on the outside, but to be bright and colourful on the inside,” Brendeland explains. In their attempt, the architects draw on inspiration from both past and present.
“The ground floor is the private zone, with bedrooms and the big bathroom. The main room on the first floor is essential and inspired by traditional Norwegian architecture, where houses often have a large, central room with light coming in from a hole in the roof. That creates an incredible atmosphere,” says Geir Brendeland, adding that the benefits of a large main room are not just aesthetic:
“Common spaces have some timeless qualities. You have more choices when it comes to furniture and activities.”
With the ambition of combining the best of past and present technology, the architects used facade windows and roof windows that face all four corners of the world. Brendeland explains.
“When there is light coming from all directions, the residents can sense the progression of the day. They can feel the rhythm of nature and seasons.”
He thinks that being able to interact with the environment is important, but that urbanisation creates challenges in terms of balancing this contact with the residents’ need for space, peace and privacy. Buildings for the future need to take this problem into account.
“Future Active House is an energyefficient concept as well as an example of how to build compact, low buildings in a densely populated area,” Brendeland explains.
He hopes that both the aesthetic and technological visions will inspire future constructions. “The house itself is made for this specific client, but we believe it is a concept that many people would find attractive,” concludes Geir Brendeland.
Light is crucial to well-being. A house with good light is a comfortable house Solution: Low energy, high performance
Future Active House makes use of several energy-saving technologies, while sticking to architectural ideals of daylight, good air quality and a pleasant living environment. Professor and architect Anne Grete Hestnes of NTNU, the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, has provided advice and consultancy in the construction process:
“I highlighted some general principles of energy use in buildings. For example, it is not that hard to reduce the energy consumption needed for heating, but hot water is a challenge. You cannot just use insulation to solve the problem of supplying hot water. You need equipment like solar collectors or heat pumps.”
As a result of her advice, Future Active House makes extensive use of solar collectors, with an area of 18.5 m².
Other energy saving initiatives include
natural ventilation automatically controlled roof windows and four facade windows sunscreens preventing overheating on hot days and heat loss in colder times user friendly control of the indoor climate through touch panels LED lighting thick insulation in roof, walls and floor low-emission wood stove and fire insert contributing to the heating extensive use of wood, a renewable material
Vision
Active House is a vision of buildings that create healthier and more comfortable lives for their occupants without impacting negatively on the climate – moving us towards a cleaner, healthier and safer world.
The Active House vision defines highly ambitious long term goals for the future building stock. The purpose of the vision is to unite interested parties based on a balanced and holistic approach to building design and performance, and to facilitate cooperation on e.g. building projects, product development, research initiatives and performance targets that can move us further towards the vision.
Active House proposes a target framework for how to design and renovate buildings that contribute positively to human health and well-being by focusing on the indoor and outdoor environment and the use of renewable energy. An Active House is evaluated on the basis of the interaction between energy consumption, indoor climate conditions and impact on the external environment.
Energy – Contributes positively to the energy balance of the building
An Active House is energy efficient and all energy needed is supplied by renewable energy sources integrated in the building or from the nearby collective energy system and electricity grid. |
Indoor Climate – Creates a healthier and more comfortable life
An Active House creates healthier and more comfortable indoor conditions for the occupants and the building ensures a generous supply of daylight and fresh air. Materials used have a positive impact on comfort and indoor climate. |
Environment – Has a positive impact on the environment
An Active House interacts positively with the environment by means of an optimised relationship with the local context, focused use of resources and on its overall environmental impact throughout its life cycle. |
Key principles of Active House
An important aspect of the Active House concept is that of ‘integration’. Although Energy, Indoor climate and Environment are essential components of the vision, it is the way their integration promotes architectural quality, human health, comfort and well-being which represents the value of the building.
|
Energy
- A building which is energy efficient and easy to operate
- A building which substantially exceeds the statutory minimum in terms of energy efficiency
- A building which exploits a variety of energy sources integrated in the overall design
|
Indoor climate
- An indoor climate that promotes health, comfort and the sense of well-being
- A building which ensures good indoor air quality, adequate thermal climate and appropriate visual and acoustical comfort
- An indoor climate which is easy for the occupants to control and at the same time encourages responsible environmental behavior
|
Environment
- A building which exerts the minimum impact on environmental and cultural resource
- A building which avoids ecological damage and seeks to add to local biodiversity
- A building which is constructed of materials which have high recycled content and which provides the ability for its own recycling or re-use
|
Integration of the three main principles of energy, indoor climate and environment
- A building which integrates the demands of comfort, climate, energy, environment and ecology into an attractive whole
- A building where such integration adds to the architectural quality and human well-being
- A building whose interactive systems and spaces add to human enjoyment and support environmentally responsive family life
Active House is an initiative supported by the VELUX Group Energy: Half the consumption of a normal house A comfortable and healthy home requires an extensive supply of energy. Future Active House includes a range of energy-efficient technologies following a two-way strategy: to minimise energy consumption while maximising the role of renewable sources in energy supply. The house will be classified with energy rating A, which means its annual consumption must not be more than 79 kWh per square metre. An average detached house in Norway consumes approximately 170 kWh per square metre a year − older detached houses consumes up to 300 kWh. “Energy consumption in Future Active House is kept low thanks to a number of initiatives,” explains energy consultant Johnny Holst: “Low-energy windows are crucial because the window area is so big. The insulation of the roof and walls is also very important.” Future Active House is able to have an unusually large facade window area thanks to a solution provided by the window producer NorDan. Marketing Director Johannes Rasmussen of NorDan explains:
“In terms of energy, the weakest parts of a window are the frame and sash. By putting high performance insulation in the frame, we are able to create windows with a very low U-value. Indirectly, the quality of the frame affects the transparency of the glass. Because the frame is so well insulated, NorDan is able to use glass with a better transparency than most low-energy glass.”
He points out that poor window glass quality has implications for the total energy consumption of a house:
“The darker the rooms, the more artificial light you need.”
Other focus areas in the Future Active House are heating, electricity, hot water and automatic control of building equipment.
Heating:
Future Active House has several heating sources. Solar collectors provide energy to a hydronic heating system in the entrance area and bathroom.
Secondary heating sources are a Jøtul fireplace on the ground floor and a fire insert on the first floor. In cold spells, wood burning will ensure a pleasant indoor temperature and help prevent over-consumption of electricity, though electrical heating must be possible in winter.
In the cold season, electricity will be connected with the energy-efficient heater from Oso, supplying domestic hot water. Electrical heating cables are installed in the floors in the corridor and bathroom.
Hot water:
Solar collectors are installed on the south-east facade and on part of the balcony railings. They will meet approximately 50% of the requirement for domestic hot water. In the summer, the house will be almost self-sufficient in hot water, but during the coldest winter it will require some additional electrically heated hot water.
Low energy electrical system:
Vintervoll has designed the electrical solutions for Future Active House. Low-energy LED lighting and a user-friendly, energy-saving automatic control system are the core of the electrical installations in the house.
Automatic monitoring and control:
Future Active House is equipped with a KNX system from Instell, which monitors and manages building equipment and functions such as sunscreens, ventilation and temperature control. Correct operation and control can bring significant energy savings (40-60%) to all these functions. In winter, the heat recovery system, provided by Swegon, recovers more than 80% of the heat from the exhaust air (more information at page 16-17).
Energy: Half the consumption of a normal house A comfortable and healthy home requires an extensive supply of energy. Future Active House includes a range of energy-efficient technologies following a two-way strategy: to minimise energy consumption while maximising the role of renewable sources in energy supply. The house will be classified with energy rating A, which means its annual consumption must not be more than 79 kWh per square metre. An average detached house in Norway consumes approximately 170 kWh per square metre a year − older detached houses consumes up to 300 kWh. “Energy consumption in Future Active House is kept low thanks to a number of initiatives,” explains energy consultant Johnny Holst: “Low-energy windows are crucial because the window area is so big. The insulation of the roof and walls is also very important.” Future Active House is able to have an unusually large facade window area thanks to a solution provided by the window producer NorDan. Marketing Director Johannes Rasmussen of NorDan explains:
“In terms of energy, the weakest parts of a window are the frame and sash. By putting high performance insulation in the frame, we are able to create windows with a very low U-value. Indirectly, the quality of the frame affects the transparency of the glass. Because the frame is so well insulated, NorDan is able to use glass with a better transparency than most low-energy glass.”
He points out that poor window glass quality has implications for the total energy consumption of a house:
“The darker the rooms, the more artificial light you need.”
Other focus areas in the Future Active House are heating, electricity, hot water and automatic control of building equipment.
Heating:
Future Active House has several heating sources. Solar collectors provide energy to a hydronic heating system in the entrance area and bathroom.
Secondary heating sources are a Jøtul fireplace on the ground floor and a fire insert on the first floor. In cold spells, wood burning will ensure a pleasant indoor temperature and help prevent over-consumption of electricity, though electrical heating must be possible in winter.
In the cold season, electricity will be connected with the energy-efficient heater from Oso, supplying domestic hot water. Electrical heating cables are installed in the floors in the corridor and bathroom.
Hot water:
Solar collectors are installed on the south-east facade and on part of the balcony railings. They will meet approximately 50% of the requirement for domestic hot water. In the summer, the house will be almost self-sufficient in hot water, but during the coldest winter it will require some additional electrically heated hot water.
Low energy electrical system:
Vintervoll has designed the electrical solutions for Future Active House. Low-energy LED lighting and a user-friendly, energy-saving automatic control system are the core of the electrical installations in the house.
Automatic monitoring and control:
Future Active House is equipped with a KNX system from Instell, which monitors and manages building equipment and functions such as sunscreens, ventilation and temperature control. Correct operation and control can bring significant energy savings (40-60%) to all these functions. In winter, the heat recovery system, provided by Swegon, recovers more than 80% of the heat from the exhaust air (more information at page 16-17).
|
|