MUSCAT: Imagine an Omani house that does not need an AC, that generates its energy through solar panels, that has its own water recycling system and a small garden with local plants which do not require a lot of irrigation. A house in which the users feel cool and comfortable throughout the whole year, without paying high electricity bills. Such a building, run without any additional energy was developed by a group of 30 students and their professors of architecture of the German University of Technology in Oman (GUtech), as well as the architecture consultants Hoehler & Partner, the contractor Larsen & Toubro, and Muscat Municipality for the Eco House Competition sponsored by The Research Council (TRC).
A model of the GUtech Eco House was exhibited to the public at Muscat City Center last week and was selected by an international jury to be built as a prototype on the new GUtech campus in Halban. "The GUtech Eco House is in line with the university's vision to develop state of the art technology for the region to reduce the overall use of energy resources in order to safeguard our planet for future generations in Oman and in the whole region," said Professor Dr. Burkhard Rauhut, Rector of GUtech.
GUtech's Eco House takes up many features of traditional Omani architecture, such as building with mud bricks, using natural ventilation for cooling, and choosing native plants for gardening. It combines this with new technologies like insulation, radiant cooling and heat exchangers. Furthermore it carefully looks at the volume, orientation and openings of the house. The main message of the Eco House is that it is possible to radically reduce the consumption of energy. GUtech's team has developed ten strategies to do so, which can also be applied to other buildings in Oman.
"To learn from the past, we went to many Omani villages and found out why mud-bricks, called sarooj, were used in the past. This material is perfectly suited for a hot and sometime humid climate. Also is does not need any additional energy as the bricks are sun-dried. We did make some ourselves, and look forward to support the builders. Using mud-brick also supports the local economy and creates jobs. In our Eco House we also recycle water and use it for irrigation of the garden, where we will only plant Omani plants, which do not require a lot of water," explained GUtech student Shaharin Hossein.
"I am very pleased to see how much our students learned through this project. Now, after one semester of working together, they are able to explain the benefits of energy-efficient designs to the public in the City Center exhibition. We developed our design such that it has a clear structure and a strong form and can be communicated well. We want to show the public in Oman that architecture can be climate adaptive, economically viable and energy efficient. Our hope is that our Eco House can influence the huge wave of construction that is to come in the region for the better," said Professor Nikolaus Knebel, Associate Professor of Architectural and Urban Design at GUtech while adding: "By involving the students from the beginning, we make sure that the new generation of architects and urban planners will disseminate the principles of ecological architecture that they have learned in this project into their future career."
The model of the GUtech architecture team includes ten energy-saving strategies. "The building is oriented such that no direct sunlight will shine into the building, thus heat gains - but of course there is ample daylight and good views through the large windows to the north. The building takes in the wind from the north-east and has an excellent natural ventilation. Also, we planned the building such that we have minimal cold losses through leakages of air or thin walls. Rather we insulate the envelope well and build it in layers of mud-brick. We cool the building with radiant cooling, which is much more comfortable and energy-efficient. The wastewater of the eco house will be cleansed naturally through a reed bed sewage plant. All of these features can be applied one-by-one or all together in other designs of Omani houses as well in order to make them more energy efficient." said Professor Martin Werminghausen, Associate Professor of Architecture and Urban Planning at GUtech.
The Eco House will be constructed on the plot of the new GUtech campus in Halban and will serve as a guesthouse for fly-in professors and other visitors of the university. The building is planned to be ready by end of 2013. GUtech offers an internationally accredited four year Bachelor of Science Programme in Urban Planning and Architectural Design and a MSc programme in Integrated Urban Planning, both programmes are taught in English.
(c) GUtech
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© Press Release 2012
