2020-10-15

Carbon neutral buildings is aluminium the future for architecture?

Advancing Net Zero is the World Green Building Council’s (WGBC) initiative for achieving decarbonisation of the building sector by 2050. Cooperation across the network of Green Building Councils (GBCs) is serving the cause of standardising market conditions and technological solutions, including the aluminium joinery systems used in passive building.

Advancing Net Zero

The Advancing Net Zero (ANZ) programme was put forward by the WGBC in 2016. Since then, twenty-nine GBCs from all over the world have joined it. They range from Asia and the Middle East to the USA and, of course, the Polish Green Building Council (PGBC). Worldwide, the sector is turning towards energy self-sufficient systems which mean that buildings can generate the energy they need themselves. At the same time, energy storage systems are being used with ever growing frequency in conjunction with ecological, renewable sources.

One of the pillars of the programme is the Net Zero Carbon Buildings Commitment, which:

(…) challenges business, organisations, cities, states and regions to reach net zero carbon in operation for all assets under their direct control by 2030, and to advocate for all buildings to be net zero carbon in operation by 2050.

https://www.worldgbc.org/thecommitment

Poland’s contribution to the campaign

The PLGBC was founded in 2008 and it aims to have a positive impact on the country’s construction industry by promoting and implementing the triple responsibility rule, in other words, responsibility towards the environment, society and the economy. The Council is continually working to modernise the design, construction and use of buildings throughout the country for the benefit of the populace, the environment and every participant in building process.

It also strives to fulfil the role of precursor and leader of these developments so that, together with all the interested parties, including government, Poland will succeed in decarbonising its buildings and the entire sector by 2050. Committing to the ANZ programme is a key step in this process. 

ALUPROF S.A., a Polish manufacturer of aluminium joinery systems and a European leader in terms of that type of solution, has joined forces with the PLGBC on a range of initiatives connected with green building. As Bożena Ryszka, ALUPROF’s Marketing and PR Director, explains:

Ecology, our company’s impact on the environment and the sustainable development of ALUPROF and the entire sector is particularly important to us. We have been working with the Polish Green Building Council for years on initiatives popularising green building. As a trailblazer for new market trends, we have a sense of responsibility for the future of international architecture. Proof of this is not only the fact that we are a strategic partner of the PLBGC’s Green Building Symposium and other pro-ecological initiatives, but, above all, that we design our systems to make it easier to obtain passive or zero energy buildings.

Aluminium is a modern material which fits in perfectly with current trends in the world of architecture. ALUPROF’s range encompasses numerous energy-saving, aluminium joinery solutions which meet the requirements for passive building in commercial and residential properties alike. They include the MB-104PASSIVE window and door system, designed for energy-saving and passive buildings, and two façade systems, the MB-SR50NHI+ and the MB-TT50, both of which have the highest possible efficiency classification, A+, for products intended for use in passive homes.

In addition, the company recently published its second AluBook album of trends. This one is entitled The Green Zone. Inside the book, experts, architects, scientists and scholars turn their attention to the concept of green building and, at the same time, give readers an insight into its most prestigious and groundbreaking examples in Poland. 

Zero energy, passive and energy-saving buildings

The WGBC’s experts acknowledge that, in many cases, constructing a building with a zero net energy requirement, which is to say, one which generates one hundred per cent of its energy needs, is infeasible. As a result, passive and energy-saving buildings which utilise renewable sources, both on site and off, are very often a more appropriate goal. Operations of that kind really do make it possible to have a positive impact not only on the state of the global construction industry, but, first and foremost, on the natural environment. More information about the carbon neutral programme and the drive towards green building can be found at:

PLGBC, in Polish: https://plgbc.org.pl/projekty/... 

WGBC, in English: https://www.worldgbc.org/advan....