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Architects: Territori 24
- Area: 1652 m²
- Year: 2014
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Photographs:Adrià Goula
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Engineering: Caba sostenibilitat, Xavier Saltó Batista
Text description provided by the architects. The new Baró de Viver Civic Centre is the first LEED Platinum certified Social Facility building for new construction in Spain.
In a neighbourhood that is cut off from the rest of the city, the new facility breathes life into the social fabric of the area and strengthens the connection between the neighbourhood’s public thoroughfare and its green spaces.
Its 1,700 m2 house an exhibition room, several workshops, a space for recreational use and education for the elderly, an auditorium that is open to the neighbourhood and fully equipped for musical performances, conferences and circus shows.
Courtyards were cut from a 40x40m compact, square floorplan and solar tubes have been incorporated, as well as skylights to bring natural light into all rooms.
A green roof was incorporated as well as a double-skin green façade. This allows for an intermediary space that filters the visuals from the interior. The second façade, at the same time, serves as an anti-vandal and security system.
The interior spaces have been designed individuallly, studying the acoustic and sensory requirements of each room. Thus, the spaces for the elderly, designed to be used during the day, are south-facing and in direct contact with the courtyard; the acoustics are modulated through the use of acoustic panels hung from the exposed concrete ceiling. The classrooms are located to the west arranged along the secondary corridor. The auditorium is essentially a dark box which gives precedence to technical requirements. Finally, the large central axis is structured as an exhibition and meeting space for the users.
A signage system based on anamorphic projections of texts guides users while at the same time making use of an economic resource that lends each space an attractive feature.
Sustainability.
The building consumes 48% less than a standard building and produces a 16% of the consumed energy through photovoltaic panels. It has been designed not to need cooling in the summer, achieving climate comfort through thermal inertia and ventilation.
100% of the building’s irrigation and sanitory water comes from rainwater. 93% of the spaces have natural light, reducing the expenditure on lighting and improving the quality and comfort of the interior.
It is a building free of pollutants such as VOCs and mercury, thus gauranteeing air quality. Entirely dry-constructed, the building reduces the impact and emissions of all its lifecycles by 41%.
Innovation.
The use of different pre-industrialized systems enable the optimization of the implementation process. The structure is defined by a system of precast concrete porticos and hollow core slab roofing. The façade is divided into two strips. One is made from precast architectural concrete panels with a large thermal break that already incorporate an air chamber, insulation and support structure.
The lower strip incorporates the openings for each room based on their orientation and energy needs. There are three standard sizes for the windows. These windows combine with glass-fibre cement panels and an exterior cladding of technical wood.
By applying these criteria we have achieved a building that is highly sustainable and whose budget is 34% lower than average for the city of Barcelona.
