Living Shell - Densify by roof raising
With the support of the Commission for Technology and Innovation (CTI), the Laboratory of Architecture and Sustainable Technologies (LAST) will go ahead with research in matters of sustainable construction. Entitled LIVING SHELL, this new research project is developed in collaboration with the Competence Centre for Typology and Planning in Architecture (CCTP) of the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts (HSLU), as well as with many private and public partners. The main objective is notably to develop a new light construction system specifically adapted to the raising of building roofs.
In a context characterized by the reduction of constructible zones and the search for urban densification potentialities, the raising in height of existing buildings offers an interesting trail for creating new housing in the heart of the already built areas. In this sense, the research project LIVING SHELL is conceived to explore the architectural and constructive issues specific to this type of intervention in a perspective of sustainability.
The research project aims particularly at developing new modular systems, which utilizes the full potential of combining a lightweight steel frame, an efficient thermal insulation and other materials suitable to dry construction processes. This new modular system must be able to reply to various needs after the transformation of existing roofs : living spaces, working spaces, garden surfaces or solar energy devices. Concrete case studies are also foreseen in Geneva, Olten, Luzern and Hamburg.