These weather conditions are a challenge to construct a smart building that can save energy throughout the year.  

A consortium of researchers, engineers and architects, instructed from the Technology Center CARTIF in Spain, has now combined different technologies to achieve a maximum of energy savings in a commercial building. The showcase building is called CARTIF III and is part of the EU-funded research project DIRECTION. The consortium claims that they can save up to 80 percent energy compared to conventional buildings of this kind.  

The heart is a 24/7 monitoring system that improves the optimal use of the building. The first months of monitoring seem to be promising, so that the concept could soon be applied to other constructions in other areas with extreme weather conditions.

DIRECTION is one of the many projects supporting the SET Plan of the European Union fostering science for transforming energy technologies to reduce the carbon dioxide emission. The 7th Conference of the SET Plan will be held on the 10-11 December in Rome.