The project is an extension of a 1950s office tower in Berlin with a twofold goal: to reconnect the isolated tower with the (current and historical) city fabric and to become a prototype of exemplary energy performance for office buildings. The new connection to context is achieved through a heterogenous composition of volumes that take cues both from the baroque layer of the city (plinth) and from the late modernist layer (slab). The energy performance concept is based on a double skin concept and an aerodynamic ventilation fin at the top of the slab.

Building overheating is an increased risk in a changing climate, and is influenced by outdoor environmental conditions, the design of the building, internal production of heat and occupant behaviour. Overheating affects the health and well-being of people, especially older and vulnerable people and can lead to increased injustices and can cause increased mortality. Key strategies to prevent overheating that you should include in your project is to first and foremost ensure all sources of overheating are tackled first and risks minimised. Then provide green, blue and social infrastructure at macro, meso, and micro-scale (building-scale). The design of the building should also include: light coloured surfaces, careful building form, orientation and design of windows, efficient fabric with summer solar shading and appropriate (night) ventilation strategies.

Passive heating is crucial and desirable in many cold climates and in mild climates in winter time to ensure that thermal comfort is provided with minimal energy use, energy costs and CO2 emissions. This can be provided by capturing the sun’s warmth by good passive solar design (i.e. optimising orientation and window locations) and ensuring that the heat is stored in a well-insulated envelope with good use of thermal mass and passive summer-time cooling strategies to avoid building overheating. Passive heating strategies need to be ‘locked in’ at early stages because it is irreversible over the building’s lifespan.

Good natural light, views and connection to outside are crucial for human health and well-being. Good visual comfort needs to be provided in all spaces inhabited by humans for any length of time. Doing so supports people’s well-being and can create delightful spaces, while at the same time minimising the energy needed for active heating and artificial lighting. This can reduce running costs and reduces running costs and tackles the climate emergency.