NEST not only researches forms of living and working, but also the energy flows and utility engineering of the houses of tomorrow: The backbone supplies the research modules with water, heat, electricity and an internet connection, and the usage data from the individual modules is analyzed in detail. The construction of the backbone is due for completion in the fall of 2015 and the first research modules are scheduled to be installed by the end of the same year.
Besides Empa and Eawag, ETH Zurich, EPF Lausanne and Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts are also involved as strategic academic partner institutions today. More research partners wanted – five projects currently underwayIn addition to the existing partners from science and industry, other innovative companies that wish to benefit from NEST to develop new products and systems are needed.
The latest news and project information is available on the website http://nest.empa.ch.
Four teams have already embarked on the implementation phase of their module: Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts is developing an office of the future under the project “meet2create”; in the project “city lifting”, EPF Lausanne is researching a prefabricated housing module, which can be placed on existing town houses. ETH Zurich’s module “HiLo” contains an innovative lightweight construction and an adaptive, attractive façade that is supposed to consume as little energy as possible during its construction and operation. And in Empa’s “Vision Holz” project, a student apartment made of novel materials based on wood is to be built. A fifth module, “Solares Fitness & Wellness“, is being developed in conjunction with the building services association Suissetec and is currently in the preparatory phase.
Further informationDownload NEST press portfolio: www.empa.ch/bilder/NEST-Pressemappe-SpatenstichProject website: nest.empa.ch
Reto Largo, Managing Director of NEST, tel.: +41 58 765 65 63, [email protected] Dr. Peter Richner, Head of the Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering, tel.: +41 58 765 41 40, [email protected]
Pictures can be downloaded from https://flic.kr/s/aHsjYzdZTF and https://flic.kr/s/aHsk2pKo35 (ground breaking ceremony) as well as the Empa image database www.empa.ch/bilder/NEST-Pressemappe-Spatenstich/.Please quote the source and copyright as stated in the caption.