Harvest Office Tower Nordic Built Challenge Norway
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date: 2013
status: finalist of the nordic built challenge competition
type: offices
client: entra as
We are proud to announce that we were the finalists of the Nordic Built Challenge in a sustainable building renovation competition for the Posthuset building.
har·vest (noun) (verb)
har·vest [ ‘h:vəst ](har·vests)
crop that is gathered
quantity of crop
collect biological material
the consequences of previous actions or behavior.
Our motto, Harvest, embodies the meaning of our approach to design a truly sustainable building. We take seriously the proposal of the Cradle-to-Cradle original thinkers - design buildings as trees and cities as forests - and we have tried to make it real. These kind of buildings can become climate regulators that produce more energy than they use, can store CO2, can use materials with a measurable positive impact on humans, can reduce and recycle the use of other materials, and can create a healthy, safe, beautiful, and inspiring environment. These are the principles that guide our team to design the renovation and extension of the Posthuset in a congested urban area.
In summary, our sustainable strategy is to use materials, constructions methods, energy systems, and installation infrastructure that follow the main principles of the C2C approach: mimic closed loops of natural process, maximize the use of renewable energy for the construction and exploitation of the building, and design the best-tailored solution to create a healthy environment for this specific location. At the same time, these kinds of interventions have to be economically viable, and this is the other important guiding principle of our proposal.
Our three most innovative proposals for turning this into reality are:
• Use massive timber elements as the essential structural material for a high-rise building, which is a natural, healthy, renewable and, in this case, local material.
• Active House Concept that harvests energy and excess heat trapped in the building, as well as harnessing ambient energy by means of storage techniques adapted to local conditions and opportunities, to supply in situ renewable energy when most needed.
• The real challenge lies in proposing the above solutions that radically improve the environmental performance while balancing costs with market willingness.
Harvest goes beyond BG14 and the refurbishment of Posthuset. It is a concept of a new and innovative way to meet the challenges of tomorrow.
