TPi January 2020

Business & market news

From zero energy buildings to zero energy communities: how to create districts that respect the environment

Zero energy communities share energy, but they can also have certain types of systems in common. Here are two examples: • The excess heat produced by a build- ing can be transmitted and transformed into energy for the needs of other build- ings in the community. • The surplus rainwater collected can be channelled and stored to then be used to irrigate the gardens of individual buildings or public parks. Creating the energy balance sheet and sharing systems will definitely be challenging, with numerous difficulties to be overcome. Despite this, the first pilot projects have shown that implementing this type of sharing at the local level can contribute effectively to lowering temperatures by 1.5°C. Eurotubi www.eurotubieuropa.it

distribution of energy and fluids. In this case, the Eurotubi Pressfitting system is particularly useful due to its characteristics such as: • Reduced load loss: the steel used to construct the pressfitting system facilitates the flow of fluids, since the internal surface of the pipes have less resistance, compared to other materials used for plumbing and heating systems. • A system that is easy and quick to install, ready to hook up to the new building network: thanks to the availability of numerous shapes and diameters in the catalogues, it is easy to add new lines to the plumbing and heating system. • Complete recyclability: steel is completely recyclable as well as friendly to the environment. This helps buildings reach a higher rating in major environmental certifications.

“What is a group of many zero energy buildings? A zero energy community.” It may seem like a play on words, but it is actually the future of shared energy: entire districts that share energy resources and plant engineering. The energy a building produces and does not consume is sent to another in need. So is this the future of plant engineering and plumbing and heating too? We often hear of new buildings that produce more energy than they consume, but one such building alone is not enough. The future is in the network of buildings that share systems and energy, preferably sustainably. All new constructions and renovations of existing buildings must be designed in order to be part of the zero energy community, where the surplus of resources of one building is transformed into consumption savings for another. Zero energy communities are groups of buildings that are able to produce at least as much energy as they consume.

Therefore, they only use self-produced energy inside their community and exclusively from renewable sources. The use of resources inside the community must be seen as an integrated system rather than a series of solutions for each building. Naturally, we are not talking only about office and residential buildings. The community also includes industries, whose energy surpluses can be used as a source of electricity, for heating and cooling. One of the characteristics required by the zero energy community protocol is the reduction of leaks during the

The pipes used for the zero energy community from Eurotubi, Italy

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TUBE PRODUCTS INTERNATIONAL January 2020

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