JUWI HEADQUARTERS, GERMANY, WORLDS MOST ENERGY EFFICIENT OFFICE BUILDING.

JUWI HEADQUARTERS, GERMANY, WORLDS MOST ENERGY EFFICIENT OFFICE BUILDING.

The office building of Juwi in Wrrstadt, Germany followed the philosophy that all employees enjoy working and have the opportunity to relax at any time. Their headquarters offers not only a perfect atmosphere for concentrated working, creativity, communication and teamwork, but also numerous possibilities and free spaces for relaxation. The vision of further development of renewable energies is a sizable reality in many regions today. You can see that in direct solutions in JUWIs headquarters.

Project profile
Owner Builders Energy designers Location Date of completion of building : JUWI Group, pvt. Ltd. : GriffnerHaus : Martin Ufheil, GmbH and Matthias Kiene, CEA GbR : Wrrstadt, Germany : June, 2008

Introduction
The building was constructed by GriffnerHaus, a renowned company that designs and builds timber and glass buildings at the cutting edge of domestic and corporate culture. Renowned Freiburg-based expert Martin Ufheil of Solares Bauen GmbH and Matthias Kiene of CEA GbR in Alzey were in charge of the buildings energy design. The timber office complex comprises three building elements and seven penthouse stories, stands out for its extraordinary energy engineering and accommodates around 300 employees. Its modular design means that it can later be expanded to accommodate 600 people. The green-minded company used natural materials to build approximately 2,000 cubic meters of certified spruce.

Concept
The buildings architecture and equipment were designed with the goal of using energy as efficiently as possible. Solar electricity produced on a surface of more than 3,000 square meters and economical

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JUWI HEADQUARTERS, GERMANY, WORLDS MOST ENERGY EFFICIENT OFFICE BUILDING.

machines and devices ensure that the building produces more energy than is used 1. The premises offer a mix of functionality and places for leisure and relaxation. Besides using renewable energies for the generation of power and heat, a CO2 neutral mobility concept is as important in achieving a complete regenerative energy supply. The JUWI group supports this goal already with innovative concepts, outlined in Wrrstadt.

Energy conservation systems installed in building

Inside and out, the building is designed to conserve energy. The insulation meets the passive house standard. For example, low-energy laptops are used instead of PCs, there is minimal need for cooling servers and solar thermal energy is used to heat water. Shading elements keep the building cool in summer. Photovoltaic installations on the building and carport 2 roofs produce solar electricity. Bio and solar energy supply the office complex with environmentally friendly heating from a so-called energy compartment. The compartment contains a wood pellet heating system, a solar thermal station and three stirling Sunmachines. A modern circulation system provides low-energy air-conditioning that is distributed through a floor piping network. Photovoltaic power station The main building is equipped with a rooftop installation mounted at a 5 angle. It prevents penetration and the roofs weatherproof properties remain unaffected. The main south-side faade 3 has an integrated, vertically mounted PV system. The cafeteria also has a rooftop installation with solar modules mounted at an angle of 10. The cafeteria faade is made entirely of custom-designed triple glazed glass/glass and insulation glass modules, in which crystalline solar cells are integrated. The solar cell shadowing gives the cafeteria a distinctive solar ambience. In the deck area the south-facing terraces were canopied with glass and solar glass modules. The PV covering protects against the

(Online), available at (www.juwi.com/fileadmin/user.../en/pdf/juwi_headquarters_en.pdf), accessed on 30 Jan 2012

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Refer to figure 2 in annexure Refer to figure 3 in annexure

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JUWI HEADQUARTERS, GERMANY, WORLDS MOST ENERGY EFFICIENT OFFICE BUILDING.

elements and creates unique shadowing from the integrated crystalline solar cells. Solar carports in the parking lot in front of the building will be futuristic fueling stations. The PV installation provides the cars parked under them protection from the sun and elements. Specific parking spaces will be reserved for electric cars that can recharge their batteries using PV-generated electricity. Emission free technology in the building The buildings entire energy requirement (heating, cooling, hot water and electricity) is generated completely renewably. The electricity design is essentially based on the interplay of several technical facilities that operate independently of one another. Besides energy production, the way energy is used and its conservation are central to the overall design. Heating insulation Excellent heat insulation is an important part in the headquarters energy concept. Windows and walls are insulated so that the building has annual heating requirements of approximately 10 kWh/m2. This corresponds to standards of a passive house; objectives of the current German regulation for energy saving in buildings and building systems (EnEV) are undercut by more than two thirds. This becomes possible by employing ecological building and insulation such as wood, cork and cellulose. Energy-efficient ventilation technology Besides heat insulation, efficient ventilation systems are of great importance for the headquarters low energy demand. Equipped with heat exchangers and fine dust filters they provide permanent ventilation. They obtain a heat recovery degree of up to 92 per cent as well as a moisture recovery degree of 65 per cent. There is an additional energy savings effect: the heat exchangers are adjusted to seasonal conditions and replaced by window ventilation as needed. Therefore the electrical power requirement of the plant equates to only 2.5 kWh/m2. Using natural light Using natural daylight in a building reduces the overall power consumption. In juwis headquarters there is a mix of large roof-lights, glass doors and wide office windows. As important is an optimal interaction of natural and artificial light. The starting point is a daylight measuring head on the roof of the northern building tract. Using photovoltaic cells it captures the suns direction. A central building

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control system seizes data and guarantees for an optimal and glare-free light quality. This ensures that daylight is used in the best possible way and if necessary is supplemented by artificial light. Additionally to the central control each employee is able to adapt the light situation according to individual needs. Automatic on-off switches result in energy savings of more than 70 per cent in comparison to conventional lighting systems. Fire protection and room air Working should also be a pleasure in high-summer temperatures for juwi employees. Instead of air conditioning water is circulating between a steel tank (placed in the basement of the northern building and accommodating 114,000 litres), a re-cooling plant 4 on the building roof and an integrated piping system in the floor. Cold temperatures are absorbed during the night by the re-cooling plant and stored in the tank. During the day cooling is pumped into the offices. This reduces the temperatures by approximately five degrees. With only one kilowatt-hour per square meter the energy requirement is very small. In addition shutters on the south sided windows shadow the building in such a way that the heat entry in the summer and thus the cooling requirement remains at its minimum. The water can also be used by a sprinkler system, in case of fire. Equipped with 2,500 sprinkler heads this system is able to reach every corner of the two buildings. There is only one store for pressure, which is not used for the floor cooling. Sustainable water cycle 5 Energy-efficient water usage and recycling systems are also part of juwis concept. Rain is collected in a cistern to be used for toilets. Our modern vacuum toilets need only one liter per flushing compared to the usual eight liters used by conventional ones. Four vacuum pumps are drawing the sewage to a complex with four chambers where the water is separated before it flows into the canalization. Together with organic kitchen waste, faecal matter is put to further use. Minimal electric power consumption :

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Refer to figure 4 in annexure Refer to figure 5 in annexure

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JUWI HEADQUARTERS, GERMANY, WORLDS MOST ENERGY EFFICIENT OFFICE BUILDING.

Laptops and flat-screen monitors instead of conventional PCs. Energy-optimized lighting. Automatic lighting control according to daylight conditions. An optimization unit that ensures constant control of power usage and prevents power drain and consumption beyond a maximum level. A closed-loop re-cooling unit is used to cool the building. Fire regulations require a sprinkler tank anyway, so that is also used for day and nighttime storage. The tank is filled at night (cooled) and during the day serves as a cooling reservoir to keep the building naturally air-conditioned. Equipment in the offices themselves is kept to a minimum and only machines certified as having the highest energy efficiency rating (A++) are used. The ventilation system operates only when heating is truly necessary. Outside the heating season the ventilation system is shut down and windows are used for air circulation and natural ventilation. The cafeteria kitchen is outfitted with an eye to the future, with as many devices as possible that can run on liquid gas (later biogas). Hot water connections are available for machines wherever possible (e.g. dishwashers). Refrigerated areas are kept to a minimum. Conclusion Altogether, the measures listed above reduce energy costs drastically. The goal of the company is to consume no more than 200,000 kilowatt-hours annually for electricity, heating and cooling. In monetary terms that mean the annual utility costs will be around two Euros per square meter. By comparison, owners of single-family homes in Germany can currently expect to pay around 20 Euros per square meter every year for energy. So the energy costs in JUWIs new building are 10 times cheaper than in a typical building. The vision of further development of renewable energies is a sizable reality
in many regions today. You can see that in direct solutions in JUWIs headquarters. 6

(Online), available at (www.juwi.com/fileadmin/user.../en/pdf/juwi_headquarters_en.pdf), accessed on 30 Jan 2012

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JUWI HEADQUARTERS, GERMANY, WORLDS MOST ENERGY EFFICIENT OFFICE BUILDING.

Select Bibliography
1. (Online), available at (http://www.juwi.com/green_buildings), accessed on 30 Jan 2012 2. (Online), available at (www.juwi.com/fileadmin/user.../en/pdf/juwi_headquarters_en.pdf), accessed on 30 Jan 2012 3. (Online), available at (www.juwi.com/fileadmin/user.../pdf/juwi_wind_en_brochure.pdf),

accessed on 30 Jan 2012 4. (Online), available at (http://www.alt-energy.info/solar-power/solar-carports-catching-on-incalifornia/), accessed on 30 Jan 2012

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JUWI HEADQUARTERS, GERMANY, WORLDS MOST ENERGY EFFICIENT OFFICE BUILDING.

Annexure

Fig. 1: JUWI Group Headquarters in Wrrstadt, Germany Source: JUWI headquarters booklet published by JUWI international in 2009

Fig 2: Solar carport Source: http://www.alt-energy.info/solar-power/solar-carports-catching-on-in-california/

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JUWI HEADQUARTERS, GERMANY, WORLDS MOST ENERGY EFFICIENT OFFICE BUILDING.

Fig 3: PV cells on faade of the building. Source: JUWI headquarters booklet published by JUWI international in 2009

Fig 4: Schematic diagram of air cooling system. Source: http://www.juwi.com/green_buildings/ventilation_system.html

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JUWI HEADQUARTERS, GERMANY, WORLDS MOST ENERGY EFFICIENT OFFICE BUILDING.

Fig 5: Schematic diagram of sustainable water cycle. http://www.juwi.com/green_buildings/gas_water_sanitary_engineering.html

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