A German startup is offering a new way for old buildings to potentially reach net-zero status: adding a prefabricated second skin.
Ecoworks begins the process with a 3D scan of an old building, both inside and out, creating a digital twin. The model is then sent to suppliers and a factory, where most of the second skin is prefabricated, including windows, ventilation, and channels for pipes.
The resulting new envelope includes a modular roof with built-in solar panels. Construction workers can install a facade panel at the site in 20 minutes. A full building conversion, including replacing fossil-fuel-powered heat, can be done in a few weeks.
Ecoworks uses AI to identify buildings best suited to its approach. Simple, block-like apartment complexes are top choices, but the company plans to expand to schools and single-family homes. It also has plans to offer its services in other countries.
Related Stories
| May 24, 2012
2012 Reconstruction Awards Entry Form
Download a PDF of the Entry Form at the bottom of this page.
| May 23, 2012
McRitchie joins McCarthy Building as VP, commercial services in southern California
McRitchie brings more than 18 years of experience in the California construction marketplace.
| May 23, 2012
New hospitals invest in data centers to manage growth in patient info
Silver Cross became one of the first hospitals to install patient tracking software so families know where a patient is at all times. New communication equipment supports wireless voice and data networks throughout the hospital, providing access to patients and their families while freeing clinicians to use phones and computers where needed instead of based on location.
| May 21, 2012
$61,000 awarded to students in Cleveland’s ACE Mentor Program
Mayor Frank G. Jackson gives keynote address at scholarship event for 80 Cleveland Metropolitan School District students involved in the ACE Mentor Program, which provides guidance and assistance for students interested in careers in the integrated construction industry.
| May 21, 2012
Wayne, Pa.'s Radnor Middle School wins national green award
Radnor Middle School among the most sustainable schools in the U.S.
| May 21, 2012
Winchester High School receives NuRoof system
Metal Roof Consultants attended a school board meeting and presented a sloped metal retrofit roof as an alternative to tearing off the existing roof and replacing it with another flat roof.
| May 16, 2012
AEG releases 3D video of L.A.'s Farmers Field
The Los Angeles Convention Center footage depicts the new convention center hall spaces, including a new lobby above Pico Boulevard, pre-function space, and what will be the largest multi-purpose ballroom in Los Angeles.
| May 15, 2012
SAGE Electrochromics to become wholly owned subsidiary of Saint-Gobain
This deal will help SAGE expand into international markets, develop new products and complete construction of the company’s new, state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Faribault, Minn.
| May 14, 2012
Plumbing research coalition to study drainline transport issue
The effort is aimed at determining if decreasing levels of water flow––caused by increasingly efficient plumbing fixtures––are sufficient to clear debris from plumbing pipes.
| May 14, 2012
Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture design Seoul’s Dancing Dragons
Supertall two-tower complex located in Seoul’s Yongsan International Business District.