Why consumers have contamination concerns in refurbished personal care products and how to reduce them via design

Refurbishment is a strategy to extend products’ lifetimes. However, refurbished products that are used intimately, such as personal care products, feel uncomfortable to use for consumers because they are perceived to be contaminated. In fifteen in-depth interviews, we explored why consumers have contamination concerns regarding a refurbished...

A zero-energy refurbishment solution for residential apartment buildings by applying an integrated, prefabricated façade module

The ambition to renovate the post-war building stock to an energy-neutral quality is getting a lot of attention in social housing association and other institutional owners, financial institutions and users. The Energy Agreement for Sustainable Growth indicates that 300.000 dwellings have to be renovated in the Netherlands annually. An effective...

Serious games as instrument to support energy retrofitting: Lessons from the Go2Zero City-zen game

This paper presents the serious multi-player tabletop game GO2Zero and explores how such games may contribute to overcoming barriers to local energy retrofitting. The game lets actors involved in local energy retrofitting, experience the multi-actor decision-making context. In half a day, about twenty participants play a role. Roles defined are:...

Business case study for the zero energy refurbishment of commercial buildings

Net zero energy is already an ambitious target for several buildings, especially since the DIRECTIVE 2010/31/EU that requires increasing the number of nearly zero energy buildings. The existing commercial building stock needs to be included in order to achieve the 2020 EU environmental targets. The main barriers of zero energy refurbishment of...

The gap between plan and practice: Actual energy performance of the zero-energy refurbishment of a terraced house

Prêt-à-Loger, TU Delft’s entry to the Solar Decathlon Europe 2014 (SDE2014), demonstrated the conversion of a common terraced house to energy neutrality, whilst adding value to its living quality. The house was retrofitted according to principles of smart & bioclimatic design, using local circumstances intelligently in the sustainable redesign....

An integrated design process for a zero-energy refurbishment prototype for post-war residential buildings in the Netherlands

Although refurbishment is a necessary step to reach the ambitious energy and decarbonisation targets for 2020 and 2050, which require an eventual reduction up to 90% in CO2 emissions, the rate of renovation is still relatively low. There is an increasing demand to upgrade both the physical condition and the performance of the building, with the...

A Facade refurbishment toolbox supporting energy upgrade of residential building skin

Over the next decade investments in buildings energy saving need to increase, together with the rate and depth of renovations, to achieve the required reduction in buildings related CO2 emissions. Although the need to improve residential buildings has been identified, guidelines come as general suggestion that fail to address the diversity of...

An Integrated Refurbishment Design Process to Energy Efficiency

Given the very low renewal rate of the building stock, the efforts to reduce energy demand must focus on the existing residential buildings. Even though awareness has been raised, the effect on energy efficiency is often neglected during the design phase of refurbishment projects. This paper discusses an integrated approach to energy-efficiency...

Sustainability and within use office building adapations: A comparison of Dutch and Australian practices

Local Authorities worldwide are encouraging adaptation as a means of reducing building related urban energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. The City of Melbourne is promoting the retrofit of 1,200 CBD properties before 2020 with sustainability measures as part of their policy to become a carbon neutral city. Australian cities date from...

Rietveld originals: Handle with care!

The work of architect Gerrit Th. Rietveld (1888 – 1964) is appreciated throughout the world. Many of the well-known buildings he designed have survived to the present. Some have been restored or refurbished, depending on the condition of the building, current needs of the building users, etc. Rietveld himself had a very clear vision about...