25. March 2015

"POWER HOUSE nZEC! Study Visit to two exemplary multi-family buildings in the Brussels Capital Region" - 25 March 2015, Brussels, Belgium

Following the success of the visit held on 13 January 2015, USH - l'Union Sociale pour l'Habitat (the French Federation of Social Housing Providers), upon the request of its members, organised a second Study Visit  in Brussels to four nearly-Zero Energy projects.

During the day, beside “L’Espoir” and “Rue de la Brasserie”, which were already the object of a previous visit organised in June 2012 (here you will find the description of the buildings), participants had the opportunity to visit also the following two sites and hear directly from the architects the technical aspects related to the projects:

• Rue Cygnes-Digue, 1050 Ixelles
  On a block located between the Rue de la Digue and the Rue des Cygnes, whose geometry is more than a little complicated, the municipality of Ixelles wanted to build a community centre as well as social dwellings with high energy efficiency levels. A consortium of architects won the contract, mainly due to their participative approach to the project. The design team wanted to submit the proposed project to dialogue and local dynamics as well as to the creative inspiration that results from collective thinking. This attitude opens the doors to benefitting from the energy, enthusiasm and expertise of those present in the neighbourhood, who have already been met and of others whose opinion need to be heard during the rest of the process. In this context, numerous activities have been organized to meet the different actors and to get them to take part in presentations of the initiative, especially local resident debate-meetings, information sessions, workshops and “lounge-pavement” meetings, principally in an endeavour to make the project easier to understand.
  
  
  
• Quai de l'Industrie, 1080 Molenbeek-Saint-Jean
  The Quai de l’Industrie project is a combination of multiple facilities: 16 public housing units, an extra-curricular facility and an office for the port of Brussels. Thanks to its location in a pedestrianized area, the open architecture of the building, the semi-public garden and the diverse activities of the neighbourhood office, it offers the residents unique possibilities for socialising each other.
  The energy consumption of the building was brought down to a minimum, resulting in a series of economic and ecological advantages. This rationalisation is favoured especially by an excellent insulation of the walls in addition to the technologies dedicated to sustainable development such as cogeneration and solar panels. The subsidies obtained were invested in optimising the use of renewable energies or in HVAC installations that are even more cost-effective.

For further information on sustainable buildings in the Brussels region, please do not hesitate to visit: http://www.sustainablecity.be/themas/sustainable-building.