CRAVEzero

Kostenoptimale und nahezu null Energie-Effizienzniveaus sind Grundsätze, die mit der EU-Richtlinie zur Gesamtenergieeffizienz von Gebäuden (Energy Performance of Buildings Directive) initiiert wurden, die 2010 neu erfasst wurde. Diese werden in den nächsten Jahren die Hauptantriebskräfte im Bausektor sein, denn ab 2021 werden alle Neubauten in der EU voraussichtlich nahezu Null-Energie-Gebäude (NZEB) sein. NZEB haben zwar deutlich gezeigt, dass das Ziel eines nahezu Null-Energie-Ziels mit den vorhandenen Technologien und Praktiken erreicht werden kann, doch die meisten Experten sind sich einig, dass eine Verschiebung auf breiter Ebene hin zu Gebäuden, die fast Null-Energie verbrauchen, erhebliche Anpassungen an die vorherrschenden Strukturen des Gebäudemarktes erforderlich macht. Die kosteneffiziente Integration von effizienten Lösungssets und Erneuerbare-Energie-Systemen in einer Form, die zu den Prozessen der Entwicklungs-, Fertigungs- und Bauindustrie sowie zu Planungs-, Design- und Beschaffungsprozessen passt, sind die größten Herausforderungen. CRAVEzero wird sich auf bewährte und neue Ansätze zur Kostensenkung von fast Nullenergiegebäuden (NZEBs) in allen Phasen des Lebenszyklus konzentrieren. Hauptziel ist es, die Mehrkosten für NZEB‘s im Zusammenhang mit Prozessen, Technologien und Gebäudebetrieb zu identifizieren und zu eliminieren und innovative Geschäftsmodelle unter Berücksichtigung der Kostenwirksamkeit für alle Beteiligten zu fördern. Die Hauptpfeiler des Projekts werden sein: (i) CRAVEzero Pinnwand als strukturiertes Rahmenwerk, das alle benötigten Informationen und Daten organisiert, um ein effektives NZEB-Geschäftsmodell mit niedrigen Lebenszykluskosten aufzubauen (ii) zuverlässige Lebenszyklus-Kostendatenbanken mit Kostensenkungspotentialen in Prozessen und Technologien (iii) Vorgehensweisen, robuste Lösungen und Geschäftsmodelle für niedrige LCC-NZEBs. Die Kostensenkung wird in der Tat alle Phasen des Prozesses abdecken, von der Stadtplanung über die Gebäudeplanung, den Bau bis hin zum Betrieb des Gebäudes, wobei gleichzeitig eine hohe Bauqualität unter Berücksichtigung der Architektur und des Innenraumklimas gewährleistet wird.

Cost optimal and nearly zero energy performance levels are principles initiated by the European Union’s (EU) Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, which was recast in 2010. These will be major drivers in the construction sector in the next few years, because all new buildings in the EU from 2021 onwards are expected to be nearly zero energy buildings (nZEB).

While nZEB realized so far have clearly shown that the nearly-zero energy target can be achieved using existing technologies and practices, most experts agree that a broad-scale shift towards nearly-zero energy buildings requires significant adjustments to prevailing building market structures. Cost-effective integration of efficient solution sets and renewable energy systems, in a form that fits with the development, manufacturing and construction industry processes, as well as with planning, design, and procurement procedures, are the major challenges.

CRAVEzero will focus on proven and new approaches to reduce the costs of Nearly Zero Energy Buildings (nZEBs) at all stages of the life cycle. The main goal is to identify and eliminate the extra costs for nZEBs related to processes, technologies, building operation, and to promote innovative business models taking into account the cost-effectiveness for all the stakeholders.

The main objectives of the projects are:

• To optimize the planning activities at different levels, from urban and spatial planning to the building detailed design.
• To foster the installation of cost-effective technologies according to local contexts and needs.
• To improve the quality of the building in a user-centred perspective
• To demonstrate the effectiveness of the CRAVEzero approach

The consortium has the expertise to reach the above mentioned objectives: it cconsists of three research institutions - AEE INTEC, Austria, Fraunhofer ISE, Germany and EURAC, Italy, leading European construction and facility companies from France, Sweden, and Italy as well as medium-sized design companies and real estate developers from Austria, Germany and Italy.

Thanks to the expertise involved, CRAVEzero will transform the whole construction cycle (from the design to the end of life) into an organized process, where the building will acquire the features of a manufacturing product cutting off the uncertainties and failures during planning-construction-operation of the current practice and reducing the associated costs.

Guidelines, databases and case studies for cost reduction of nZEB technologies, processes and business models will be developed in close cooperation with the industry partners involved. Working methodologies, ready-to-be-used customisable solutions enabling cost reduction, speeding up the process and ensuring the high performance level of the new buildings, will be addressed. Nevertheless, the nZEB promoted by CRAVEzero is not a unique model to be simply duplicated, but it is composed by a set of customisable solutions to be combined according to the local context and the needs of the users, ensuring the high quality of the built environment, preserving the identity of each single building, increasing user acceptance and maintaining high real estate value. Highly replicable models will be developed in order to lower design and construction costs, avoid delays, optimise and simplify the management of development, construction and operational phase while minimising errors and failures.

The main results of the project will be:

• Result 1 - Reference schemes for nZEB urban planning and building design process: providing a framework for the development of effective urban plans that will provide a series of useful information to the professionals, with a systematic vision that will facilitate the design process at single building level.
• Result 2 – Performance-based procurement processes, including guidelines for performance agreements during the planning process - not only for public but also for private procurements.
• Result 3 – Demonstration of co-benefits: optimal architecture and building configuration for high quality living and/or working environment and real estate value with a matrix of possible building concepts
• Result 4 and Result 5 – Structured methodological approach for optimising integration of technologies and renewables
• Result 6 – nZEBs lean management protocols to be applied in different phases of the building life cycle
• Result 7 – Low Life cycle cost nZEB business models considering different stakeholder perspectives
• Result 8 – Protocol for continuous commissioning and effective user behaviour strategies
• Result 9 – Scenarios of optimal nZEB - energy grids interaction.

All the project results will be included in the “CRAVEzero pinboard” – an interactive web-based structured framework supporting the development of low LCC nZEB business models. It will represent a support for developers and designers, supporting and driving them thanks to the project outcomes, as well as for other stakeholders with information on the manufacturers and the whole supply chain, which must fulfil a set of requirements in terms of costs & quality insurance.