Rosenheim

International Rosenheim Window and Facade Conference 2009

Nearly all of the 33 speakers at the 37^th International Rosenheim Window and Facade Conference were in agreement that the global restructuring of the economy into a sustainable and energy efficient system can only be achieved with innovative technology. The conference was attended by over 1,000 delegates from 27 countries who were greeted by Rosenheim’s Lord Mayoress Gabriele Bauer with the following words: “Federal Government should improve the framework conditions for energy-efficient construction as this improves the climate and creates jobs” – a welcome message for the representatives of this industry, who would also like to hear this type of commitment from those responsible in Berlin.

The Lord Mayoress of Rosenheim, Gabriele Bauer, very convincingly made the connection between climate change, energy transition, sustainability and the power of innovation. In her concluding line “It is and will always be the engineers and inventors who advance mankind – rather than bureaucrats and the eternal sceptics” she outlined the basic tenor of the next 30 lectures for the over 1,000 delegates.

The Director of the ift Rosenheim, Ulrich Sieberath, touched on many details to illustrate the effects of the changed framework conditions on the industry: above all the Energy Conservation Directive (EnEV), the sponsorship programmes by the KfW Bank as well as the Economic Stimulus Package II which primarily supports building projects such as day nurseries, schools etc. The main focus here lies on thermal insulation and safety aspects.

This benefits manufacturers of windows, facades, glass and solar shading systems with suitable designs and relevant characteristic values and documentary evidence. It is important to remember though that the ‘small print’ of regulatory instruments contains various conditions that affect designers, funding agencies and consumers. Examples are the amount of window area in a building, the building envelope of which must meet a minimum average U-value of H_T, or the requirements for thermal protection during summer, which can no longer be met without solar shading devices. Ulrich Sieberath presented ‘rules of thumb’ and example calculations to make the application of the rules easier. However, he also warned not to be ‘too imaginative’ when it comes to the documentary evidence of thermal insulation and protection and not to sign the declaration of compliance stipulated in the EnEV too readily as this could easily be considered fraud under civil law - the first cases have already reached the courts. For this reason, Ulrich Sieberath recommended that documentary evidence of the U_W-value be provided via the standard size 123 x 148 cm. He concluded his talk with the optimistic conclusion: “Manufacturers with innovative products, plausible documentary evidence and good marketing will be able to use these favourable framework conditions to their benefit.”

The Director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Labour Sciences and Organisation (IAO), Dr. Ing. Wilhelm Bauer, spoke about the global ‘mega-trend’ of sustainable living and working, pointing out that the worldwide population growth will be more focused on cities promising prosperity for the future. Existing mega-cities will continue to grow, and new cities will spring up, which have to comply with the laws of sustainability. It is therefore no surprise that the construction of new buildings is increasingly subject to documentary evidence and certificates regarding sustainability. As well as the internationally known systems LEED (USA) and BREEAM (GB), the German sustainability certificate DGNB (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Nachhaltiges Bauen) is gaining in importance. An indication for this powerful global trend is the restructuring of international industrial corporations into environmental companies, such as Bosch. Wilhelm Bauer therefore concluded his talk: “With technology and innovation we can master the future.”

The next plenum speaker to take the microphone was Dr.-Ing. Martin Elsberger who represents the ‘Directorate General for Energy and Transport’ of the European Commission; he spoke about the amendment to the ‘European Directive on the Energy Performance of Buildings’. This Directive plays a strategic role in the Commission’s aim of achieving the promised climate objectives, providing a sustained economic stimulus for the construction industry and reducing the dependence on energy imports. Martin Elsberger said: “The rehabilitation of buildings to improve energy efficiency involves the lowest costs for avoiding CO₂-emissions and is therefore the most effective approach for achieving our climate objectives.” After praising the efforts made in Germany in implementing the Directive in the form of the EnEV he talked about other EU countries where implementation has not yet been achieved and too much time is being spent trying to find, and fill, formal loopholes. For this reason, the next Directive will contain stricter rules for its implementation and a uniform rule for determining the energy consumption of buildings. The content of this will be similar to that of the Energy Conservation Regulations so that German manufacturers will be well prepared for future requirements. It is clear that the future trend is towards energy-efficient, zero energy and energy-gain buildings.

On Friday, the Chairman of the Working Party of Hamburg Housing Associations (Arbeitskreis Hamburger Wohnungsbaugenossenschaften e.V.), Ulrich Stallmann, addressed the plenum with his talk about the perspective from the point of view of the housing industry, which plays an important role in the refurbishment of the housing stock. He painted a picture of a background scenario with decreasing real incomes and rents, stagnating rental prices and increasing problems with housing units staying vacant, which was all summed up in his rather depressing punch line “Budgets are trimmed down, customers are becoming more critical and there is zero room for price increases”. However, he followed this up with tips for dealing with housing associations as long-term investors, which were of great interest for the contractors in the audience. He pointed out that contracts were often placed not only on the strength of a competitive price but also on high-quality installation by the assembling company and extended guarantee undertakings with their associated reduction in service and maintenance costs. This also reduces the liability risk of defective products, for example in the case of malfunction of automatic doors, and includes comprehensive product documentations, which are mandatory for determining the cause of failure in liability cases. Suppliers with comprehensive solutions covering several trades, with high-quality products, including a professional installation, finish and service, are well placed to gain housing associations as regular customers.

The final address in Friday’s plenum session was by Alexander Rieck, Chairman of the Fraunhofer Joint Research Project FUCON (Future Construction) who gave a very vivid description of construction in the future. While the innovation of products will continue, large building projects will in future be constructed using industrial production and industrial engineering methods similar to those used in the automotive and aviation industries. In this context, ‘parametric design’ plays an important role, in which the properties of materials, the construction and the manufacturing processes are all considered at an early stage of the design process of buildings. This has the potential for considerable efficiency improvements in terms of material, time and costs, for example by utilising maximum dimensions and faster manufacturing methods. However, this does not mean that the craft and tradition of the building trade will die out. Qualified and experienced construction workers will still be needed in the future for the professional installation of these innovative products in new buildings and, especially, in the existing building stock. It is however necessary to overcome the rigid separation between different trades. As partner in the architects’ firm LAVA, Alexander Rieck is also responsible for the design of the City Plaza in Masdar City, which is to be built in the United Arab Emirates about 20 miles to the east of the capital Abu Dhabi, with completion scheduled for 2016. Masdar City has a worldwide reputation for incorporating a vision of the future regarding working and living, and is thus an example for new mega-cities in booming markets. The project was announced as ‘CO₂-neutral science city’ and is intended to derive all its energy requirements from renewable resources as well as following strict sustainability guidelines. The city is to become home to about 50,000 residents and 1,500 companies and institutes from the ecology sector, living and working without CO₂-emissions, cars and waste. Apart from these modern city visions, other drivers for new construction technologies and mechatronic construction elements are 'health' and 'care' because in an aging society there is a lot of emphasis on health and comfortable living environments. With his summary “In Germany we have leading construction technologies and outstandingly qualified engineers and tradesmen, but we are too slow and hesitant in implementation” he tried to encourage the attending experts from the window, facade and glass industry to act with more confidence and implement innovative technologies faster.

In the next talks during the six sessions speakers presented many innovative technologies as well as important changes in standards and guidelines. These included news about vacuum glazing, electronics in construction elements, replacement rules for simplifying documentary evidence through to the evaluation of energy gaining windows. Top managers and decision-makers in the audience found plenty of important information here to be able to make educated decisions regarding future product developments and strategies.

For those who were not able to come to the International Rosenheim Window and Facade Conference, the printed conference volume with manuscripts of the lectures and a CD with the authorised lecture slides in PDF format surely is an interesting and valuable resource for industry professionals. Excerpts can be viewed under www.ift-rosenheim.de/literature_sales.php and copies can be ordered at EUR 75.00 plus VAT.