13/06/2012

Spielberk Tower B – the First Green Office Building in Brno

Currently the tallest building in Brno and the fifth highest in the Czech Republic was approved in mid-March 2012. Functionality and efficiency are two main characteristics of this building, the design of which took into account not only the costs, return on investment or energy use, but also the comfort of its users and its impact on the environment.
The Spielberk Tower B building has 21 above-ground and three underground floors, and approximately 500 parking spaces. The reception is on the ground floor which, through the turnstiles, leads to five elevators which can take passengers to the top floor within 30 seconds. Each floor has 830 m2 of office space, as well as bathrooms and a utility room. The top floor is an exception, as it has a spacious, south-oriented terrace. This terrace offers building users a place to relax and a beautiful view of the Spielberk Castle and Petrov church. Above the top office floor of the building are two smaller floors with technical facilities. There are also two stairways inside the building connecting individual floors, which double up as escape stairways. Higher floors can be reached by five elevators situated in the central core of the building.
The building was designed in line with the principles of sustainable and green buildings, in this case according to the BREEAM certification and the ISO 14001 standard. In order to fulfill the parameters of a green building it was necessary to conceptually design the building right from the start, meaning from the facade to the heating and cooling systems, to ventilation and lighting as well as take into account the requirements for electrical installations. Construction and technology of the building The building’s supporting system is composed of a monolithic reinforced concrete frame. The facade has three different parts: the brick part is made of Dutch bricks installed on stainless steel anchors, and is insulated with a 160 mm thick mineral wool layer. Glass areas are in the form of glass walls and belts; windows are openable in 3m module. The stone part of the building is composed of travertine mounted on an aluminum grid with a 160 mm insulation. The building’s facade is made largely of glass to allow maximum daylight to enter the office space. Shading is ensured by mechanical, horizontal blinds already installed in the interior. A standard offer includes a spacious office with raised floors, under which are stored all the data and power installations, ending in floor boxes. Technical installations, such as the four-tube active induction units, lighting circuits, automatic lighting system, and sprinklers, are installed in a mineral ceiling grid of 600 mm × 600 mm. Regulation of the interior environment is ensured by four-tube induction units with area regulation, but also with the option for individual regulation. Bathrooms and kitchenettes have an individual ventilation system. The building also has prepared recommended spaces for server rooms – they are oriented towards the east and are close to the core, where cold water circuits are installed. The building is divided into two zones of over ground floors: from 1st to 10th, and from 11th to 21st. Each zone has its own air conditioning unit, located in the garage and on the roof. Outside air is distributed by a piping network to local induction units, where it’s cooled or heated, as necessary. Each office can manage its own air conditioning with a thermostat. The lighting is entirely automatic, controlled by motion sensors and light intensity in such a way so as to achieve the desired standard values of lighting intensity necessary for working spaces. Common spaces are monitored with a camera system, which in turn is overseen by a 24hr security service. View of the investor (Statement given by Remon Vos, Director of CTP Invest) Tower B is the last phase of the Spielberk Office Centre, and is the flagship of CTP’s office project. Office parks, like Spielberk, are built for companies whose employees spend a large part of their time inside these offices. This is why we are trying to create a pleasant environment for the people, and this naturally includes restaurants, cafés, gyms, etc. We believe it’s very important to construct buildings of a high quality and create a pleasant working environment for people. All buildings built by the CTP company remain in their ownership, which is one of the reasons for putting emphasis on quality. Building „green“ was our own choice, we are trying to create a pleasant environment for people and at the same time have a positive impact to the environment around us. Costs for the construction of a green building are approximately 15% higher than those for constructing a classical building. On the other hand, energy expenses are 30% lower, which has obviously been met with a positive response from the tenants. Recent studies also show that people working in a green building have a 10% lower incidence of illnesses. It’s very important for clients to be able to offer a pleasant working environment and thus entice the most talented people to work in their companies. If the clients are satisfied, this can lead to their expansion, meaning they might need to rent more office space which, for an investor, is always a good thing. BREEAM certification (statement given by Stefan de Goeij, Head of Property Management Department, CTP Invest) CTP is devoted to develop green buildings in order to have the best possible performance on the environment and the costs. Long-term sustainable buildings are one of the top priorities in our society, which is why the company decided to go for the green certification. The whole process begins already in the design phase of the project, since it is this that makes it truly maximize the long-term sustainable value of the building. In 2011 the company opted to certify Tower B with the BREEAM methodology, since it seemed to them at that time the most appropriate one for the current situation and the Czech Republic. CTP, however, does not exclude LEED as a possible method of certification in the future. The Tower B building will be labeled with at least the BREEAM Excellent certificate and will be one of the first certified office buildings with this rating in the Czech Republic. Nevertheless, the company aims to achieve the BREEAM Outstanding level. Since achieving this highest level of certification is very difficult, more time will be needed to complete the whole process of certification. That is why, at the moment, the evaluation process is not over yet – it’s not easy to reach the necessary credits, with which there hasn’t been any experience yet in the Czech Republic. This is why the evaluator, the company EC Harris, is closely working with the BRE organization in the UK in order to maximize the long-term sustainable value of the building. The article was published in Energy Self-Sufficient Buildings magazine, issue 2/2012. Author: Ing. Karel Smejkal, CTP Invest, spol. s r.o. Photo and pictures: CTP Invest, Studio acht, Ing. Václav Hlaváček
Investor CTP company belongs to one of the most renowned developers of commercial real estate properties in the Czech Republic. Their main portfolio contains a network of 36 CTParks, located in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania and Poland. Other company activities include the Spielberk Office Centre in Brno, Axis Office Park and CTZone (intelligent solutions for small and medium size enterprises). An administrative project IQ Ostrava is currently under construction. The total area, which CTP operates, is 1 758 000 m2 , and the total expected income from leases for 2012 is 110 million euros.