A Modular Timber Construction System for the Sustainable Vertical Extension of Office Buildings

Aleksis Dind,Sophie Lufkin,Emmanuel Rey

doi:10.3390/designs2030030

Aleksis Dind, Sophie Lufkin + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/designs2030030

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Journal: Designs	Publication Date: Aug 8, 2018
Citations: 8	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

Abstract

Most European cities are facing urban densification issues. In this context, a solution to create usable spaces without additional pressure on land consists in the vertical extension of existing buildings. Given their abundance in the building stock, tertiary buildings offer an important potential. The paper introduces the Working Space project, which aims to develop an innovative, modular and prefabricated timber construction system adapted to the vertical extension of existing office buildings. The dimensions of the system can be adjusted to a great variety of structural grids and allows for any new typological organisation. Based on the principles of bioclimatic architecture, the extension’s envelope provides high-performance insulation, a smart management of passive solar gains, natural ventilation and free cooling, but also offers large surfaces dedicated to photovoltaic energy production and urban biodiversity. The system is made up of eco-friendly, local materials with very low environmental impact. The project’s outcomes are presented at a variety of scales, from urban design to construction details, as well as the outputs of an extensive life cycle assessment including the induced mobility impacts. Finally, the paper introduces a first application of this innovative architectural concept, which is currently being completed in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Highlights

IntroductionNumerous studies on the built environment’s sustainability have shown the many negative consequences of urban sprawl: waste of land, pressure on landscape, environmental impacts due to mobility, high infrastructural costs and worsening of socio-cultural inequalities [1]
Most European cities are currently facing urban densification issues
In Switzerland, for instance, residential buildings account for nearly half of the built-up areas, whereas tertiary buildings represent around 20% of the total floor surfaces

Summary

Introduction

Numerous studies on the built environment’s sustainability have shown the many negative consequences of urban sprawl: waste of land, pressure on landscape, environmental impacts due to mobility, high infrastructural costs and worsening of socio-cultural inequalities [1]. Based on a better coordination between urbanization and mobility, the latter focus especially on an increase in population and employment density close to public transportation, on the valorisation of untapped potentials within constructed sites and on the promotion of high-density, mix-used urban polarities [2] In this context, the vertical extension of existing buildings provides a solution to create usable spaces without wasting any additional land. Tertiary buildings usually present favourable conditions for vertical extensions in terms of construction typology (simple structural grids and large flat roofs, among others)

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