ETSAV-UPC > RESSÒ Project

Fuente: Ressò
Fotografía: Andrés Flajszer

RESSÒ project is designed by 50 students of the Architecture School of el Vallès (ETSAV-UPC) for the international competitions of universities Solar Decathlon Europe 2014 that took place this summer in Versailles.

RESSÒ is a strategy of urban, energy and social rehabilitation; furthermore it is a teaching tool.

From 2008 Spain is suffering an economical, social and environmental crisis. During the construction boom we were constructing too much, so nowadays there is no demand for new housing. The housing stock in our country is very energetically inefficient. The inequality of our system is responsible of having a lot of people in poverty, without the capacity of paying the energy for living in comfort. European regulations of energy consumption and CO2 emissions make necessary a transformation of the housing sector. We don’t have to continue constructing; we have to rehabilitate our cities.

An energetic rehabilitation is not just the rehabilitation of the dwelling, it is also related to the user and its attitude. RESSÒ is a strategy that spreads a more sustainable way of living, gives comfort conditions and encourage energetic rehabilitations. The materialization and the starting point of the project is a collective house where people do quotidian work. As a consequence, a strengthening of social relations happens. Experimentation and use of the self sufficient building will encourage small energy rehabilitations of the private dwellings in the neighborhood, starting a process of urban rehabilitation.

We propose an unconventional way for the rehabilitation of urban fabrics that seeks a more sustainable way of living through collectivization.

This strategy will reach its high point after the Solar Decathlon when, together with the Municipality of Rubí, we assemble permanently the prototype in Sant Muç. That will be an opportunity to experience our theories and we will provide some solutions to the problems of the district.

This space is highly flexible and it can change in other to host different activities. Thanks to the standard scaffolding structure this changes can be done in few hours. The building is modulated at 2m, creating a 3d grid all over the building. Furniture and partitions are very simple, with an honest design. They are modular, so their position can be exchanged around the prototype.

To improve flexibility we create a perimetral ring where all permanent elements are concentrated: structure, facades, installations, furniture and appliances. Inside the ring there is the big space of 10x10x6 m that is completely changeable. During the design process two main variables were considered: the building has to be assembled in Versailles in only 10 days and all the materials have to fit into trucks. That is why we have made prefabricated elements for the façades, roof and floor and also a very precise and optimized planning of the assembling process. Panels are constructed with light solutions, except for the floor that is heavy (62% of the total load) and made out of concrete. The roof is a puzzle of more than one thousand pieces of wood that, once they are assembled together, make an only piece of 150m2 that is lifted completely finished with a crane.

RESSÒ is highly efficient in terms of energy performance. It is almost self sufficient because of passive bioclimatic strategies, solar panels and high insulation. We want to offer a free shelter space with climate comfort to the neighbors and disadvantaged families of the district. To achieve it the building has the following systems:

Thermal lag of the floor that absorbs heat during hot moments of the daytime and releases heat when it is cold. It creates stability in the summer and in the winter. Furthermore, in the coldest moments, thermal mass is activated with a tube circuit of water heated up with solar panels of vacuum tubes.

Receiving facades: that manage radiation, create some insulation and work as solar chimney. They have a double skin facade of polycarbonate, a thin polycarbonate to the exterior and a thick one to the interior. It has 2 openings to the interiors and 2 automatized openings to the exterior. There are two openings in the lower part and two in the top of the facade. These openings permit a great multiplicity of combinations depending on moment and needs. Moreover it has a curtain to increase solar protection.

North facades, Roof and Floor highly isolated to decrease heat loose.

Cross and natural ventilation. Also forced ventilation with some facade elements for pre-heating air in the winter.

Light interior partitions, they permit a reduction of the volume to heat up in cold moments

As a teaching-tool all elements are unhidden and easy to modify. We want to show everything to teach how it works and promote self-construction, so users can apply this solutions at home. Furthermore, unhidden installations means saving material and money to cover elements that can be seen.

Col·laboradors (professors ETSAV):
Dani Calatayud, Coque Claret, Roger Tudó, Oriol Barber, Enric Corbat, Albert Cuchí, Oriol Muntané, Amadeu Santacana, Víctor Seguí

Càlcul Estructural:
Xavi Gimferrer, Joan Ramon Blasco, Robert Brufau

Fotografia:
Andrés Flajszer

Superfície:
144+40m2

Pressupost prototip:
245.000€

Pressupost total Projecte:
245.000+100.000€= 345.000€

Projecte:
2013-2015 (inauguració als SDE14 Versailles juny 2014)

Situació final:
Av. Can Tapís, 196 , Sant Muç, Rubí, Barcelona. A partir del juny 2015