Sustainable Building

The built environment including planning, design, construction and management of new and existing buildings, both for humans and animals, as well as the infrastructure (roads, rail roads, bridges, tunnels, sewers) poses a great challenge to sustainable development. Improved living and working environments, reduced consumption of energy and other resources, decreased waste production and identification of good practices for different phases in the building process are examples of areas where more research is needed.

It is vital to understand the entire building process, including planning, design, construction, operation, maintenance, refurbishment, decommissioning, and recycling of materials in order to reduce negative impacts on the environment. It is increasingly understood that a transformation of the way the various actors in the construction sector (broadly defined) are working is a key to improved sustainability, efficiency and reduced cost. The procedures by which the sector defines, produces, delivers and operates products and services to end users and clients can be highly improved.

Maintenance and renovation are significant elements of a sustainable built environment. The potential for raising the sustainability of the existing stock of buildings is crucial. Recognized barriers to renovation are for example lack of knowledge, experience and good examples, inappropriate processes and products or missing incentives. Growing renovation rates mean that improvement of technologies and processes are needed to meet market demands.

A good indoor environment is of vital concern. The problems related to moisture damage, noise and emissions of particles and chemicals from materials are not solved (proposals relating to these problems are handled by Expert Panel 4 Pollution, Environment and Health). Consequently control strategies for clean indoor air are needed.The role of architectural design in attaining sustainability objectives is also critical.

Farm buildings need to be designed in such a way that both animal welfare and production efficiency are fulfilled.

Aspects of ecological, economic and social sustainability include a better understanding of how different initiatives are supported or weakened by the incentives and regulations in the building sector are other subjects of interest.

The business environment of the real-estate and construction sector is changing rapidly. The performance of living and working premises has various effects on its operation and productivity as well as on the wellbeing of the users. Solutions to improve comfort and satisfaction in buildings continue to be an important topic of development. Life-style issues are also of great concern. The development and implementation of lifecycle-based solutions is challenging.

The research funded by Formas shall provide new and sustainable approaches and solutions for a sustainable built environment and its use.

Formas' Research Strategy 2009-2012