Rubbing shoulders with its famous Bauhaus neighbours, B10 makes its own innovative statement. Many aspects of the interactive house look like something from a James Bond film with its self-learning energy management system and automated facade sections.
B10 generates twice as much energy from sustainable sources as it requires. It uses the surplus to power two electric cars and supplies the Weißenhof Museum, which is located next door. Located in the heart of the famous Stuttgart suburb of Weißenhof and surrounded by Bauhaus buildings designed by world-renowned architects such as Walter Gropius, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Le Corbusier. B10 has nevertheless turned out to be just as innovative as its neighbours were 90 years ago. The architect and engineer, Professor Werner Sobek, was in charge of planning and design bringing together the energy systems of the electric vehicles and the building to form a single, integrally controlled system. It unites the charging infrastructure and the installation engineering for the generation, storage and management of energy into one central element – B10 provides a link between the users, the building and the vehicles.
The energy management system is adjusted to the recorded everyday routines of the user, and ensures that the electric car is sufficiently charged at the appropriate time. Once the user has left the building, all the domestic technology systems are switched into energy-saving mode. At the end of the day, the building prepares for the occupant’s return. When any of the electric cars belonging to the interactive house approaches, the energy management system switches on the heating or cooling systems, based on the vehicle’s geoposition. When the car is a few metres from the building, the gate opens, the lights are switched on and the facade is lowered to the desired position.
The building offers some important design innovations. The interactive house was designed and pre-fabricated within a few months, and erected on-site in a single day. Other important innovations include the use of 17mm thick vacuum glazing that forms a storey-high glazed front and facade elements that fold and double-up as a terrace. The steel supports of the individual foundations and the steel grid on which the building stands have been hot dip galvanized, as has the steel substructure of the folding terrace.
Like all experimental buildings designed by Werner Sobek, B10 uses a minimum of resources and is completely recyclable. It fulfils all the requirements of the triple zero standard: the building generates more energy than it actually requires (zero energy), causes no emissions of any kind (zero emissions) and all materials can be recycled without any residues (zero waste).
Architect: Prof. Werner Sobek
Image: Zooey Braun