New homes are typically built using an energy-efficient approach, but the Belgian company Solarcompany has decided to “downgrade” its old office in a small building on the industrial outskirts of Hösden-Zolder in eastern Belgium. In 2008-2009, its reconstruction was carried out by Bert Schellekens from the Belgian bureau WV architecten and the engineering company ESIA bvba.
The architects decided to make the new walls of the building according to the sandwich type, using the concrete frame of the old building and supplementing it with wooden lathing around the perimeters. On the outside, the façade is clad with inexpensive but environmentally friendly Equitone fiber cement panels (tectiva, Eter-Color E20 Gris), and the inner layer of the sandwich is filled with recycled cellulose wool, including old newspapers. The surface of the Equitone panels in Eter-Color E20 Gris is similar to concrete, adding austerity and solidity to the building. However, the panels themselves are lightweight, attached to the wooden frame with external bolts: they can be easily replaced or removed to gain access to the electrical wiring located under them. And, most importantly, such a wall structure facilitates the access of air inside the sandwich, contributing to the optimal moisture regime inside the insulation layer, and as a result, ensures the safety of the insulation itself and maintaining high thermal performance. As a result, the structure of the walls retains heat so well that the greatest concern of the designers was the cooling of the building, which had to be thought out, among other things, with the expectation of heat transfer from office monitors, computers and servers, which creates a rather large thermal load compared to a residential building - precisely in this is the challenge when working on an energy efficient office building. Warehouses are located on the lower floor, and offices and the watchman's apartment are located on the upper two floors. Not wanting to waste energy on air conditioning, Schellekens preferred night cooling: the geothermal system redistributes and stores the heat accumulated during the day. A heat pump is used for heating and cooling, pumping "gray" industrial water and seven wells, each 150 m deep. In addition, the interior space is ventilated at night through the atrium.
Solar panels on the south wall and roof are responsible for generating electricity; there is also a solar collector and a tank for industrial water on the roof. All methods of obtaining and storing heat and energy are subject to a centralized electronic control system that controls windows, lighting, heating and pumping.
From an architectural point of view, the headquarters building primarily responds to the industrial history of the region, which until relatively recently was a coal-mining region. Slightly embossed, multi-tone panel texture
Equitone [tectiva] has successfully blended into the strict style of laconic modernism with its ribbon windows and strict brutal volumes, barely enlivened by the plane of the stained glass window with the wooden frame of the entrance recessed in it. Solar panels on a gray background also look quite organic and even decorative. The low-key yet modern and sustainable building is completed with wooden window frames and floors.
Zero balance has become a novelty not only for its rather provincial region: Solarcompany's headquarters is considered the first zero balance office building in Belgium. Which is quite symbolic for a company that deals with progressive solar energy. In 2010, the Magazainstraat office was awarded the Brussels best eco-building award.
