New services for the comprehensive and ecological renovation of buildings

Transcription

1 New services for the comprehensive and ecological renovation of buildings Environment» Economy» Quality of life A project funded by the European Commission within the framework of the LIFE programme

2 New ways towards the sustainable renovation of buildings The renovation of municipal and private residential buildings is often characterized by great cost pressure. Therefore economic and energetic measures which are reasonable in the longterm are not carried out. Even more problematic is the consideration of ecological goals. Only in very few cases renewable energy and building materials are employed. Measures for quality assurance in the planning and implementation as well as the consideration of ecological qualifications when choosing the executing company are usually neglected in order to minimise costs. In the last years, the City of Graz has laid the foundations for a renovation campaign seen from an ecological point of view. The Graz Energy Agency was founded and could establish itself as provider of services for the city, for Energy Service Companies and developers. Within the framework of the completed LIFE-project, important preparatory work for a wide campaign for the ecological renovation of buildings was accomplished: Market analysis of experiences with ecological measures and evaluation of the future development in the building trade and the subconstruction work, at municipalities and builders of the region. Networking of regional providers (Producers, planners and executing companies) for a common qualification, improvement of cooperation and creation of the necessary conditions for a wide rising awareness. Extending of existing Third Party Financing offers including ecological components and the development of service models for the existing trademark Thermoprofit. Model renovation of typical residential buildings with several floors. All execution modules were tested and demonstration projects for the future were realised. Development of a simple model for the evaluation of ecological quality rating of renovation options. For results and documents of all project modules see Market analysis More than 200 companies from all fields of the building industry were interviewed. From the point of view of the companies, ecological renovation of old buildings is already very important today and will play an even more essential role in the future. They view low environmental impact, positive effects on health and the use of renewable energy sources as its greatest strengths. Also, economic elements such as a better image of the company, marketing effects and regional creation of value are considered to be important. The main weaknesses are lacking sources of supply, profile of the products and high prices. The following aspects are important for the spread of ecological renovation of old buildings: better education and training in planning and execution, promotion of ecological renovation and simplification of the building code. On the whole companies expect an economic boom of the ecological renovation of old buildings.

3 What motivates companies to become active in the field of ecological renovation of buildings? Percent Acquire new customers Open new markets Distinction from competitors More orders clients Use of subsidies Inquiries of New partners Legal Trends in the sector framework important very important Motives company network ecological renovation of buildings More than 50 companies showed interest in the forming of a company network. About 25 companies actively participated in the setting up of the network. The following projects were worked out: Gathering of basics for the rising of awareness within the population, political decision makers and public administration. Training of cooperation at the construction site to assure quality at delicate interfaces. The coaching offer Öko-Bau-Team (Eco-Build-Team) was developed. Grüne Wärme (Green heat) as an example for a quality label for ecological technical facilities in buildings. Committed installers pass on their know-how to colleagues, schools and customers. Healthy interior as a quality objective of a renovation: Critical harmful substances, materials and methods were examined. Measures and measurements were included in a Recommendation of procedures. Ecological product catalogue on the Internet: Detailed reference for realisation and simple evaluation of the most important materials. Currently the acquired knowledge is put to the test at ongoing renovation projects at public buildings.

4 Extending of existing Third Party Financing offers Contracting is a comprehensive service; a general contractor is responsible for the planning, execution, financing, maintenance and management. The concept was successful for the energetic optimisation of buildings. Within the framework of the impulse programme Thermoprofit, the Graz Energy Agency offers assistance to real estate owners with the planning and realisation of relevant projects. In the course of the LIFE project, several providers examined several objects to find out how ecological criteria could be integrated into the invitation for submission of tenders for a contracting project. Valuable experience was gained through the concrete realisation of the pilot projects. Problems were caused by protests from the inhabitants, which meant more organisational efforts. In case additional costs result in a higher house rent ( 18 rent law), a process at the arbitration boards is obligatory. As far as the companies go, they lacked experience in the execution of ecological measures. Realised pilot projects The holistic view of a building was paramount for the pilot projects. This includes four aspects of renovation: Optimisation of the use of resources: water, green areas, developed area Efficient power supply: heat, electricity Healthy buildings : building materials, density of the building, avoiding thermal bridges, each assembly is at the same time a disassembly Social aspect of the renovation projects (renovation of inhabited buildings, including the inhabitants in the preparatory and renovation process) These are the results of the pilot projects: Market upturn through an investment volume of altogether 4,4 million Euros in the field of ecological renovation of old buildings. Better quality of living in the respective buildings Comprehensive know-how in the invitation for submission of tenders and handling of ecological renovations, which is passed on to the housing office (municipal authority Graz) and other real estate owners. Development of a model for quality assessment in ecological construction. Testing the developed models and procedures for their suitability for practice and adaptation development of the service ecological building for executing companies.

5 General renovation of the Denggenhofsiedlung (Neue Heimat - Gemeinnützige Wohnungs- u. Siedlungsgesellschaft in Steiermark, Ges.m.b.H., a non-profit housing association) The residential estate consists of 12 independent economic units with altogether 72 buildings and 447 accommodation units (about m2 floor space). General contractor: Alpine Mayreder BauGmbH Measures: Thermal insulation of the exterior property walls (10 cm) Thermal insulation of the ceilings Base renovation with thermal insulation Exchange of the old windows with new windows made of wood-profiles Renewal of the outdoor installations (pergola, covered wooden bicycle stand,...) Development of green areas Energy savings: 1, 7 Mio kwh per year (50%) CO2-savings: 282 tons per year (50%) Investments: 4 Mio Euro (gross) The particularity of this project is the dimension of ecological renovation: 1500 windows were replaced with new windows made of wood-profiles. The use of PU-foam was avoided and mineral wool and sealing tape were used instead. Durable products (for example titanium zinc sheet metal) and environmentally friendly coats of paint were consciously chosen. There were no additional costs for the tenants (financing of the investments through the Maintenance and Improvement Contribution with energy savings of Euro per year). Thermography is a good monitor for quality. Building of the Denggenhof residential estate before renovation (left) and after the insulation (right).

6 Renovation of the Daungasse, Asperngasse, Wagner-Biro-Straße in Graz (Gemeinnützige Grazer Wohnungsgenossenschaft, a non-profit housing association) The residential estate consists of altogether 150 accommodation units (3 residential buildings). Contractor: Steirische Ferngas AG, J. Kern & Co Baugesellschaft m.b.h. Measures: Installation of a central heating system (natural gas) together with distributing system Installation of a central hot-water supply system with solar heating system (85 m 2 solar collector space) Insulation of the exterior property walls (8 cm thermal insulation composite system), cellar ceilings and top floor ceilings Exchange of the windows Installation of seven elevator systems Renewal of the electric systems in the public areas (staircases, cellars) Maintenance and operation of all systems Establishment of an energy management and controlling system Energy savings: KWh per year (45%) CO2-savings: 405 tons per year (69%) Investments: 2,2 Million Euro (net) The renovation is the first Third Party Financing project in Austria with Thermoprofit guarantees in the field of residential buildings. The financing of the measures for renovation were made possible through energy savings. The project was awarded the Energieprofi 2001 by the Austrian minister of the environment and the Österreichische Gesellschaft für Umwelt und Technik (Austrian Society for Environment and Technology). Within this building project, which has been initiated before the LIFE-project started, key aspects for the integration of ecological criteria during redevelopments have been developed. Altogether the energy-related and ecological renovation of 74 buildings was initiated and realised. Like for example the renovation of Vinzenz-Muchitsch-Straße 29 and Vinzenz-Muchitsch-Straße 31 and some initial analyses. For descriptions of these projects see category Thermoprofit Projects and Thermoprofit Plus. They can also be ordered from the Graz Energy Agency.

7 Assessment of ecological quality rating Within the framework of the project three different approaches for the assessment of ecological valency were tested: 1. Within the framework of the platform of companies quality criteria were defined, which were intentionally widely chosen so that each company could position itself. Using developed living spaces (e.g. avoiding expenses for additional infrastructure) From old to new (e.g. higher regional creation of value compared to a new building) Optimising efficiency of energy and raw material (e.g. better insulation) Promoting small energy and raw material cycles (e.g. renewable energy sources) Taking health care seriously (e.g. choice of material and making use of daylight in the interior) Cultural contribution (e.g. preserving town centres and creation of jobs in industrial companies) 2. For the actual invitations for submission of tenders a compromise between ecological demand, usual building practices and economic efficiency had to be found. For comparison of submitted offers, scores to evaluate costs and ecological criteria were used. The following aspects have been considered: Optimised use of resources, reduction of strains, comfort of users, quality assurance. 3. In order to examine a possible future development, the assessment system was adapted to the worldwide initiative Green Building Challenge for the renovation of buildings. Based on the Total Quality assessment system for buildings an assessment system for the ecological renovation of old buildings was set up. It does not take into account the entire building but rather the measures of renovation. Only parameters are assessed which can be influenced by renovation. The instrument evaluates renovation variations with different degrees of detail (from complete renovation to the renovation of the heating system etc.). After completion of the renovation, the ecological improvement of the pilot projects was assessed with this programme.

8 Project coordination + contact: Grazer Energieagentur Kaiserfeldgasse 13 A-8010 Graz, Austria Phone: Fax: office@grazer-ea.at The project was supported and funded by: Project data: Project New services for a comprehensive ecological renovation of buildings, Project number: LIFE99 ENV/A/000392