Sustainable, digital, intelligent – Handwerkerhaus Bremen

As always in the construction industry project timelines are short and the completion of a building is often delayed. By using the latest technology and by focusing on speed of delivery and environmental impact, the construction industry can reduce project costs, timelines and use of resources in the build phase and during the operation of the building. Recent construction and project development trends have emphasized digital planning and delivery, with tools such as building information modelling (BIM) leading the way for faster, more efficient and highly sustainable onsite implementation.

A great example of this development is in Bremen, Germany. The Handwerkerhaus, planned using BIM software, was built in record time using sustainable structural wood-hybrid construction. The Cree company, a pioneer in wood-hybrid construction, used a systematic approach for faster, easier and more efficient planning, production and construction of the building. In tandem with ZECH Bau, the structural work of the project was delivered in under two weeks. To achieve this impressive pace, various flexible, mutually compatible technologies are integrated into Cree’s innovative system. The individual components of the Cree building system (structural elements, operating facilities and interior fittings) can be prefabricated as standard products and be used in a module-based manner.
To continue the fast pace of construction and sustainable building design, the smartengine technology was chosen to complement the prefabricated structural wood: The quick realization is made possible by the simplified planning and install. By using smartengine technology, many traditional infrastructures are eliminated, (230V cabling for lighting, the KNX bus, room thermostats, motion sensors, luminaire LED drivers), saving time and cost during installation and commissioning. This is achieved by using standard data cable, with which the sensor and luminaire can be connected quickly and easily using RJ45 connections – think “plug and play” easy. Over this simple IT Infrastructure backbone, lights and sensors are supplied with power, and data is relayed in real time to optimize building intelligence. In the case of the Handwerkerhaus the sensors were preinstalled in the air-handling ceiling, facilitating and fastening the installation on the site immensely.

The day-to-day operation of Handwerkerhaus will be sustainable, just like the construction itself. smartengine’s solution optimizes the consumption of resources for light, heating, air conditioning and ventilation, achieving savings of up to 40%, which then leads to a correspondingly significant reduction in CO2 emissions. The analysis and evaluation of the collected information opens up new possibilities for the buildings usage.
The next focus is on the well-being and productivity of the tenants. Applications enable, for example, the display of free meeting rooms and workstations. The smartengine mobile app provides user-friendly control and building information. In the Handwerkerhaus, the smartengine technology should provide light for under two watts per square meter, all while automatically changing the hue of the light, from warm to cold white throughout the day. Studies have shown Human Centric Lighting (HCL) increases the performance and well-being of the building users.