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WICONA aluminium systems in Oviedo’s first collective housing developments designed in accordance with Passive House criteria
Among the excellent sustainable criteria for both buildings set by the developer COMAMSA, the WICLINE 75 TOP window stands out, with features that comply with Passive House requirements.
Álvarez y Valle Arquitectos have overseen the design of two collective housing buildings developed by COMAMSA with a view to complying with the strict Passive House requirements. Both developments are currently in the process of being certified. In this regard, the developer has gone to great lengths to create a range of high-performance homes that have been designed in accordance with the strict Passive House certification criteria, something which, until quite recently, has been much more widespread in single-family homes.
WICONA ALUMINIUM SYSTEMS FOR MAXIMUM ENERGY EFFICIENCY
A Passive House-certified home guarantees those living in it a high level of comfort as well as extremely low energy consumption. A stable temperature is maintained inside the homes with clean, fresh air and optimum soundproofing. Consumption is slashed by 70% to 90% compared to a traditional home which means homeowners bear less of a burden when it comes to soaring energy costs. Passive Houses have a mechanical ventilation system, which is the “lung” of the house, guaranteeing continuous ventilation without having to open the windows, with no loss of heat and with a high level of efficiency, generating four times more energy than is consumed.
“IN BOTH PROJECTS WE WANTED ALUMINIUM TO BE THE MATERIAL OF CHOICE. FOR A CONTEMPORARY AND MODERN FAÇADE, IT IS A MATERIAL THAT ADDS A TOUCH OF SUBTLETY AND ELEGANCE LIKE NO OTHER”.
ENRIQUE ÁLVAREZ, ÁLVAREZ Y VALLE ARQUITECTOS
In accordance with these premises, both developments have been built using a trailblazing system in Asturias, providing inhabitants with a comfortable and efficient home, equipped with the most cutting-edge home automation innovations. One of the key factors in being awarded the Passive House certification was down to using
WICONA systems. Making a building energy efficient entails paying the utmost attention to the thermal envelope and air tightness while ensuring optimal controlled ventilation. The three aspects are interrelated since, for controlled ventilation, the air must be renewed, eliminating infiltrations, which normally occur at the façade junctions. In order to prevent cold air from getting into the house and warm air from escaping, with a view to ensuring that energy is
not wasted while comfort remains unaffected, airtightness, one of the principles of Passive houses must be guaranteed. This ensures that the house provides a comfortable living environment with zero energy consumption. To guarantee this airtightness, WICONA systems passed the strict Blower Door test, thereby guaranteeing the level of airtightness required to be awarded the Passive House certification in this respect. The concealed sash version of the WICLINE 75 TOP window performs in accordance with the strict Passive House standard, guaranteeing a high level of thermal insulation. Furthermore, it uses patented WICONA technology such as the ETC Intelligence®, with low emissivity polyamides in the thermal break zone that prevent temperature transmission from the outside to the inside of the home while ensuring that a comfortable temperature is maintained inside the home. In this regard, WICONA joinery also stands out for being made of Hydro CIRCAL certified recycled aluminium. Thanks to the WICLINE 75 TOP concealed sash, spaces with an abundance of light and panoramic views have been created inside the homes while, from the outside, the fine visible lines of the joinery have resulted in a sophisticated and elegant façade, where the fixed and hinged panels are indistinguishable. “What we are most pleased with is how the façades of the two buildings turned out: we brought together design and quality with efficiency”, explain Álvarez y Valle Arquitectos. For the larger openings, however, WICONA's WICSLIDE 160 lift-and-slide sliding doors have been used to create large terraces, like in the development on C/Matemático Pedrayes, which are incorporated into the living room and which the residents can benefit from all year round, something you do not see every day in the city centre. The WICSLIDE 160 sliding system is a trailblazing high-tech system that combines excellent thermal insulation with the highest levels of functionality and design, as well as allowing for large openings and withstanding heavy glass weights.
THANKS TO THE RECYCLED ALUMINIUM WITH HIGH POST-CONSUMER CERTIFIED HYDRO CIRCAL CONTENT USED TO MANUFACTURE THE WICONA WINDOWS INSTALLED, 34,335 kg OF CO2 EMISSIONS INTO THE ENVIRONMENT HAVE BEEN AVOIDED
The Head of the construction company, PEVIDA Construcciones, Mario Pevida, highlights that “WICONA has risen to the challenge in terms of technical service, product, and quality of implementation. They have achieved the carbon footprint criterion, which we deem to be of the utmost importance in view of the current situation”. All WICONA joinery systems are made with Hydro CIRCAL aluminium, a recycled aluminium with a minimum of 75% of the material coming from post-consumer waste, in other words, from windows that have already reached the end of their useful life cycle, thereby fostering the circular economy.
This leads to a drastic reduction in the carbon footprint of aluminium production: the average is reduced to 2.3 kg of CO2 per kg of aluminium, in contrast to what is used in Europe, where the average for primary aluminium is 8.6 kg of CO2 per kg of aluminium. Thanks to the WICONA joinery systems installed in both developments, made with Hydro CIRCAL post-consumer recycled aluminium, 34,335 kg of CO2 emissions have been avoided.
WICONA's joinery systems are, to sum up, the optimal solution when it comes to achieving Passive House building systems that guarantee energy efficiency and comfort, while, at the same time, contributing, thanks to Hydro CIRCAL aluminium, to fostering the circular economy and cutting down on the carbon footprint.
