This June, the 21 EXCESS partner organisations involved in developing plus-energy solutions for different European climate zones met in Genk (Belgium) for an exclusive visit of the project’s demonstration building in Hasselt. The visit to the EXCESS residential building, which has already welcomed tenants, was accompanied by a partner meeting to touch base on all four EXCESS demo buildings  and the subsequent roll-out of plus-energy solutions across Europe. Watch our 2.50min video of the meeting and site visit here.

Organised by EXCESS partners VITO Belgium and CORDIUM, partners toured the 20-apartment flagship EXCESS building project in Hasselt. The EXCESS PEBs in Hasselt are part of a larger residential area with 68 apartments intended partially for social housing, making affordability a key objective. The plus-energy standard is achieved through geothermal heat pumps producing thermal energy for heating and domestic hot water, as well as PVT panels and a small roof-top wind turbine generating renewable electricity for the building complex. 

A central heating and energy generation system, integrated in the central basement, enables the integration of the renewable heating and electricity sources. The improved monitoring and control functionalities of the Building Energy Management System (BEMS), developed in the context of EXCESS, are optimising the balancing between energy production and demand of the buildings.

Discussions and exchanges between EXCESS partners surrounding the visit centred on construction and technology integration progress at the remaining three EXCESS demo buildings in Helsinki (Finland), Granada (Spain) and Graz (Austria). 

With all demo sites in different stages of finalisation, EXCESS partners brainstormed on strategies and activities to best harness, monitor and demonstrate the concrete and manifold social, economic and environmental benefits of PEB solutions for new construction as well as the refurbishment of buildings, taking into account the needs and priorities of diverse stakeholder ecosystems, including building tenants, developers and local governments. 

More information and materials can be found here.