:: Metecno Group ::

September 2006

IN DUBAI A REVOLVING SKYSCRAPER USES SUN AND WIND ENERGY

It will be 250 metres tall, with floors that revolve independently so as to better exploit wind and sun energy and to be self-sufficient from an energy point of view.
The skyscraper will be built in Dubai, Arab Emirates, but was designed in Italy by David Fisher, Fabio Bettazzi and Marco Sala, with the collaboration of Leslie Robertson, US engineer and designer of the "World Trade Center" in New York. The design was presented in Florence at Wrec 2006, the ninth world congress on renewable energy.
Each of the 59 floors of the tower block will house one apartment, which will revolve independently and give a constantly changing appearance to the building.
Electrical energy will be produced by a series of fans fitted in the open spaces between floors and which will exploit wind force, in a similar way to windmills.
The solar panels, fitted on the revolving roofs of each floor, will be exposed to sunlight and will allow an accumulation of energy in excess of actual needs, and which can therefore be traded.
Source: www.ilportaledelsole.it

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September 2006

ANOTHER STEP FORWARD FOR NANOTECHNOLOGIES

Milan Polytechnic has published a study in the magazine Nature Physics. The study involves carbon nanotubes, superfine cylinders 10,000 times finer than a human hair, composed of electron-coated carbon atoms.
For their outstanding mechanical, electrical and optical properties, they constitute the base elements for the design of new materials for construction, electronics and other fields.
Source: www.costruire.it

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September 2006

MORE SPACE WITH COMPACT INSULATION

Munich has seen the construction of the first large building 100% insulated with vacuum heat-insulated panels.
The use of this expensive type of insulation has achieved the objective of gaining in usable surface area, which was then exploited on the market.
It has also allowed an expansion in window size, with the benefit of increased solar heat.
Heat insulation through vacuum panels is a relatively new technology. Their transportation requires a great deal of care and for this reason are the subject of research to improve handling and price characteristics.

Source: www.miniwatt.it

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September 2006

FLIGHTPATH MEMORIAL

The Moskow Architects studio was announced winner of the international competition to design a memorial to all passengers and personnel lost in the air crashes during the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York.
The design centrepiece is a clear glass sculpture - illuminated by night - covered in various reflector panels similar to fragments suspended above the heads of visitors, and works are due to commence next summer.
Source: www.professionearchitetto.it

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September 2006

LUXURY "SUBMARINE" HOTEL

It will be named Hydropolis and will be built on the sea bed, 300 metres from the coast of Dubai: the first luxury hotel to be built underwater, on which works began last summer.
For some years now, Dubai, with its uncontaminated marine areas and considerable tourism and conference business, has focused mass investment on luxury constructions.
The design - produced by German architect, Joachim Hauser - covers a surface area of 10.8 hectares, will cost 500 million dollars, and will house 220 suites at a twenty-metre depth.
The complex will have three main building units: an area on land with the reception area and offices, the submarine section with the rooms and various hotel facilities, and a transparent tunnel to link the two structures via a shuttle train.
The basic hotel structure will be in steel, cement and plexiglass. Also planned is a panoramic platform, three 150-seater restaurants, a spa centre, several bars, shopping centre and the first submarine museum in the world.
The 220 super-deluxe suites will all have panoramic portholes, a control panel to regulate the lighting and even to regulate odours.
Source: www.costruzioni.net

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September 2006

DUPONT INVESTS IN PHOTOVOLTAIC

US multinational Dupont has announced its intention to increase Tedlar polyvinylfluoride film (PVF) production to satisfy increasing demand in the world photovoltaic panel sector.
DuPont - estimating a market growth of over 30% a year - recently launched the Tedlar PV2100 Series, film offering greater stability in terms of size, abrasion and perforation resistance and a higher reflection index, in turn translating into an increase in panel power and efficiency.
Source: www.polimerica.it

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September 2006

SAFER FLIGHTS WITH SELF-REPAIRING MATERIALS

Scientists at Bristol University have produced a fibre to cover the pod of spacecraft and aircraft fuselages, with the capacity to self-repair damage caused by meteorites, celestial bodies or airborne objects.
When hit by micro-meteorites, the outer coating of a craft is lacerated, rock or metal particles perforate the shell and penetrate deeply into the structure causing oxygen leaks. The inspiring principle for the scientists is similar to the self-healing of wounds in the human body and self-vulcanisation of all-terrain bikes.
Many spacecraft components are in composite material, polymer matrices reinforced with suitable additives, normally fibres. The researchers have placed glass capsules inside the polymer structure which, following a hit, break and release a hardening resin which expands to fill the hole.
Of obvious interest the possible technological transfer of this fibre to other sectors: the addition of fibres and nanoparticles to integrate new properties to a material is also of interest to the shipbuilding, car manufacturing and other industries.
Source: www.repubblica.it - 'Affari e Finanza' section

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September 2006

CONSTRUCTION AND IFC STANDARDS, EUROPEAN PROJECT LAUNCHED

The kick-off meeting was held recently in Valencia of the European project for the integration of service standards into building industry production processes adopting IFC standards to promote innovation and sustainable development (STAND-Inn project): building design data exchange.
IFC (Industry Foundation Classes) is a classification and description system - in a software-based electronic format - for building products and components forming part of a given works project: fixtures and fittings, decks, roofs, systems, etc. and therefore constitutes a data structuring model to encourage sharing.
The idea is the propose this in the near future as a true ISO standard.
STAND-Inn is a project financed by the European Commission in answer to the demand for convergence in the building sector: the main objective is to converge IFC standards, which form the base platform for the optimum exchange of building design, implementation and management data, with the series of service standards on sustainable development.
STAND-Inn is assigned to a consortium involving 28 members from 11 European countries and with 5 European networks including the main industry stakeholders, purchasers and researchers, plus two partners from China (where 50% of the total square metres worldwide was constructed in 2006) and Australia. Representing Italy are UNI and Milan Polytechnic.
Source: www.edilportale.com

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September 2006

"SELF-CONTAINED" CASUAL FASHION

UNIQLO is a leading Japanese casual wear chain.
Pending the inauguration of its new store in the Broadway area of New York, it has temporarily set up its store in a mobile container, similar to a cargo shipping container.
It is a kind of 'pop-up' store touring the city in the two months before opening of its flagship, due in the autumn.
The communication campaign uses the following headline: "From Tokyo to New York". Indeed a new way to promote the store and attract customers, reaching different targets in different areas of the city at different times: for example, it was strategically positioned near to the venue for a recent Mariah Carey concert.
The container fitting - care of LOT-EK, a New York studio famed for its use of industrial materials - resembles carriages of a futuristic metropolitan railway, optimising space usage.
Source: www.nydailynews.com

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September 2006

THE NEW MEYER IS THE FIRST BIOCLIMATIC HOSPITAL IN ITALY

Built in the Florence foothills, the new Villa Ognissanti paediatric hospital is the first to respect environmental compatibility regulations, saving energy and limiting air emissions.
It is due to be inaugurated within a year and meets the following parameters: containment of air emissions, protection against overheating in summer months, ventilation and air quality, contained use of air conditioning, better use of natural lighting.
The innovative solutions introduced are: ventilated roof, shaded window fittings, grilles in favour of natural nocturnal ventilation in summer, use of technological systems for internal artificial lighting regulation, state-of-the-art energy saving systems.
The benefits are: energy savings of around 45%, CO2 emission reduced by 55% from heating, 45% from air conditioning and 40% from lighting.
The additional costs to include these elements - around 10-20% in comparison with traditional building - can be recovered in 7-11 years.
Below is a list of strategies adopted in another structure - Padiglione Hospitals - to achieve energy savings: improved heat insulation in the building shell, top quality high-performance glass fittings and panels, natural-artificial lighting and natural-artificial ventilation control and monitoring systems, skylights, overhead natural lighting elements (sun-pipes) and transparent pyramids, solar greenhouse to the north, roof gardens on flat roof surfaces, radiator flooring, condenser boilers, BMS: environmental quality and comfort control systems.
The expected benefits are: around 50% of energy saved on heating, 75% on air conditioning, around 80% on electricity consumption; CO2 avoidance: the extra cost is around 40% above that of a traditionally-designed hospital.
Also in this case, cost recovery is expected in the medium term, with dual benefits: financial and environmental.
Source: www.archiportale.com

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