ETH Zürich to open House of Natural Resources building
Climate-KIC is supporting its partner ETH Zürich’s work on a new building on the Zürich Hönggerberg campus, which is designed to test several new technologies along with structural elements made from Swiss hardwood.
The office building is scheduled to open in May 2015.
The building’s simple frame construction means the ground plan is flexible and the inner and outer walls can be arranged as desired. However, the House of Natural Resources (HoNR) is much more than just an office building – it is also a laboratory for sustainable construction in which ETH Zürich is testing new technologies and construction elements that have never been used anywhere else.
When the Laboratory of Hydraulics, Hydrology and Glaciology (VAW) moved to the Zürich Hönggerberg campus in spring 2013, it soon became clear that its scientists would require additional office space. Turning the annexe into a transdisciplinary research project was suggested and six professors from the institutes of Structural Engineering, Building Materials and Technology in Architecture began to carry out their research projects directly as part of construction.
Climate-KIC is an important partner of the House of Natural Resources (HoNR). The Climate-KIC Building Technologies Accelerator (BTA) flagship project, in which ETH Zürich is the leading partner, focuses on the development and market launch of technologies that lead to measurable CO2 reductions. Over the next six years, Climate-KIC will be contributing millions to ETH technology development in the sustainable building sector. The HoNR, which is one of six European Living Labs in the BTA project, is intended to help establish new building technologies in the market more quickly.
In the HoNR, solar elements are to be arranged using wood modules, and an adaptive solar facade will provide supplementary electricity. Additionally, a new type of wooden facade promises increased weather resistance and stability. These elements are still under development. The two research projects focusing on the innovative use of hardwood are already implemented in the building.
