Passeggiata dei Castani

Design: For the European “Sinfonia – Bozen/Bolzano Smart City“ project, a housing complex of 72 affordable apartments was chosen to test a new method for existing buildings to achieve the EU nearly zero energy building (nZEB) standard.

Wood: The concept was centered around the use of multifunctional, prefabricated timber elements with integrated windows and shutters as well as a finished facade made of aluminum and high-pressure laminate. This way, the time required for production, quality assurance, and construction was reduced by 60%. 225 m² of face modules were added to the buildings per day. Thanks to the low emission level during the construction, the tenants were able to stay in their apartments during the entire refurbishment process.

Energy: The project managed to achieve its goals. The new thermal insulation reduced the heating energy demand by a factor of 10, down to 22.5 kWh/m²a from previously 238 kWh/m²a. The CO2 emissions of the building were also reduced, down to 6 kg/m²a. Next to the thermally insulated timber modules, this achievement was also made possible through the use of a photovoltaics and thermal water heating installation on the rooftop, a geothermal heat pump system, and a mechanical ventilation.