July 2, 2024
Sustainable building is an innovative approach to design, construction, and operation that aims to create structures that are not only environmentally responsible but also resource-efficient throughout their lifecycle. According to the UN environmental program, the building and construction sector is by far the largest emitter of greenhouse gases, accounting for 37% of global emissions. What if the choice of your office space could make a difference?
“The entire culture of what we do and where we live has to be re-considered in a sustainable way. This is a real challenge but at the same time it’s an incredibly attractive idea”
Jacques Herzog, Herzog & de Meuron, Founding Partner
Sustainable building is an innovative approach to design, construction, and operation that aims to create structures that are not only environmentally responsible but also resource-efficient throughout their lifecycle. According to the UN environmental program, the building and construction sector is by far the largest emitter of greenhouse gases, accounting for 37% of global emissions. What if the choice of your office space could make a difference?
In order to achieve the ambitious goal of paying back the energy used to build it within one generation, the HORTUS must generate a maximum energy harvest. Using a photovoltaic system of approx. 5,000 m2 for this purpose, the building is equipped with solar panels on the hipped roof and on the façade, where possible down to the lowest floor. This maximizes the energy harvest, resulting in an overproduction of approx. 30KWh per year. All in all, after 31 years the HORTUS will become energy positive.
The so-called full circle design of the HORTUS ensures that no component is wasted. In other words, as many components as possible should outlast the building and have a potential second or even third life. This requires a sophisticated use of raw materials – be it by sharing, recycling, repairing or reprocessing them. Examples of this include the use of recyclable rammed earth in the ceilings and parapets or wastepaper used for insulation. However, if building materials such as steel are used for the escape stairs, these are also 100% reusable.
According to SENN, the choice of ceilings was also key in terms of minimizing grey energy. Although flat concrete ceilings are (still) the cheapest, they have a substantial ecological footprint. A solution was required that consisted of local and sustainable components such as wood and clay. The result is a wooden beam ceiling with rammed earth, which is based on a pure plug-in system of Japanese construction. Thanks to its modular structure, it is transportable and will therefore also have a second life. Basically, all the components used in the HORTUS were cataloged and will be available for recycling in the ecological cycle system after any demolition of the building in the future.
Aside from the obvious ecological impact, sustainability at HORTUS not only involves materials and ecology, but also people and nature.
Johannes Eisenhut, Managing Director of Senn Development AG, sums up this holistic principle: “The HORTUS will be a source of energy – both creative and factual solar energy. It has an attitude that combines tech and nature, stimulates science and utopia and exemplifies sustainability in ecological, human and social terms.”
The green inner courtyard of the HORTUS, for which a biodiversity concept was developed. With a water garden and the vertical greenery extending from there, it offers users a variety of views and vistas as well as places to interact and mingle. The first floor is also divided and designed for meetings and co-working with fully equipped meeting rooms, meeting booths and a cafeteria.
According to SENN, a building that incorporates circular economy is currently still more expensive than a standard building. Certain production processes and materials are kept artificially cheap, whereas manual labor with Swiss wages is expensive. “It’s a shame that the focus here is on operations. We have reached a point where constructing a building with standard materials costs more CO2 and energy than it will later consume over its entire service life. We need to rethink the standards.” Said Kerstin Müller, Managing Director of Zirkular In an interview for SENN
Nevertheless, “We as a society can do it” also said Kerstin Müller, explaining how office buildings as the HORTUS prove that new buildings can indeed be constructed with a very small footprint.
By becoming a HORTUS resident you’ll directly contribute to saving 26 tons of CO2 per year (per floor). Your company can also save up to 25% of space by using common areas and meeting rooms outside their rented space thanks to our ecosystem-oriented workspace. Plus, you’re choosing a location in the heart of Europe’s largest life-science innovation district, offering much more than just sustainability: the key to innovation and collaboration.
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