ASSESSMENT ARCHITECTURE COMPETITION HEADQUARTER STEWEAG-STEG, GRAZ

_{Prof. Brian Cody, Dipl.-Ing. Andreas Ampenberger}

The Institute for Buildings and Energy was commissioned to assess the energy efficiency of the designs of the architectural competition for the new corporate headquarters of the energy supplier STEWEAG-STEG GmbH in Graz. The client decided in favour of a refurbishment of the high-rise building on the Leonhardgürtel, a building from the early 1960s, as part of a restructuring process. In addition, the location will be expanded by 150 people. As a result of the consultation, STEWEAG-STEG GmbH was ultimately able to make a well-founded assessment of various design options regarding energy efficiency and comfort aspects. The evaluation of the designs included, for example, the effects of the location and orientation on the property, the influence of the building shape on the energy balance, an optimal design of the facade and the question of the extent to which natural ventilation is possible. In addition to the energy evaluation of the designs submitted in the architectural competition, various alternative strategies for the refurbishment of the office building were also examined. For many building owners and planners, the breakdown of the energy demand into the individual originators brings surprising findings. This knowledge is in turn a prerequisite for being able to reasonably assess the relevance of individual aspects. One striking aspect of the submitted designs was that the efforts of the planning teams regarding energy improvements concentrated on reducing heat losses in winter by improving the insulation standard. However, the results of dynamic computer simulations have shown in this case that the influence of subsequent thermal insulation of the opaque wall surfaces is of secondary importance with regard to the total primary energy requirement, and that in view of a given available budget, consideration should be given to which strategies can achieve the highest possible benefit at the same cost.

Duration

September 2006 – October 2006

Publications

Cody, B.: „Energieeffizienz in Gebäuden“, in: VDI Berichte 2034, Fassaden - Blick in die Zukunft, VDI Verlag, Düsseldorf, Deutschland, 2008

Cody, B.: „Energieeffiziente Sanierung von Büroobjekten am Beispiel STEWEAG-STEG“, Forschungsjournal der Technischen Universität Graz SS 07, Graz, Österreich, 2007, ISBN 1682-5675

Cody, B.: „Energieeffizienz versus Energieverbrauch“ Denken in Systemen, in: Zeno 3/2009, München, Callway

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