Design Process
Eco-friendly Architects in Spain
An increasing number of firms and architects in Spain are choosing ecological architecture. This philosophy aims to build sustainably, utilizing the renewable natural resources our planet offers, without overexploiting them, to maintain balance and preserve Earth’s ecosystems.
All this, without forgetting people, the primary users of this architecture, which also aims to ensure comfort and build in a healthy way, without harming any living being.
Despite these aspirations, the daily reality for eco-friendly architects in Spain presents a complex landscape. The economy, with its recent crises and cutbacks, local regulations, and new systems of living, working, and tourism, etc., mean that architecture, ecological or not, must adapt to this growing society.
So, what challenges do eco-friendly architects in Spain face?
– It is not easy to find available land for building new homes; land prices are rising, and most of the time, banks require land ownership to grant mortgages.
– A high percentage of what is built in Spain today is rehabilitation.
– Companies are becoming increasingly international, leading many people to opt for renting rather than settling in a fixed location and building their own home.
– Land prices in Spain have been stagnant for many years and only increase with the annual CPI rise. This is not the case for buildable land, which fluctuates with real estate speculation. Thus, the purchasing power of many young couples is reduced.
– Policies until now have not promoted or favored self-consumption.
And many other factors that define the current situation for eco-friendly architects in Spain.
In today’s article, we would like to present this scenario from two perspectives, based on housing typology: single-family and multi-family.
Current situation of eco-friendly architects in Spain:
Single-family/Private Housing
We will begin by discussing the current situation of eco-friendly architects in Spain who work in the field of single-family or private housing.
Within this broad group, we can make three distinctions:
1. Large companies or large firms. They usually work with prefabrication systems.
2. Small, “artisanal eco” firms.
3. “Hybrid” firms, halfway between prefabrication and craftsmanship.
Prefabrication / Large Companies or Firms
Prefabricated construction is a system that primarily aims to reduce costs and increase the speed of the construction process.
To achieve this, part of the construction process is transferred to factories, which are also capable of mimicking certain processes of repetition, modularity, integration, standardization, and optimization to generate a high-quality, precise product as many times as necessary, albeit with specific, invariable characteristics.
Many eco-friendly firms use these prefabrication processes to offer a standard product to users. These are efficient homes, typically composed of prefabricated panels from the factory, which are marketed as efficient despite not being entirely so.
Typically, these types of modular homes are ordered “from a catalog,” and although today’s market offers a wide range of possibilities, variables, and uses, they remain standardized products that have little to do with the real needs of a family.
Furthermore, some of the products used (synthetic glues, insulation, plastics, paints, etc.) can be harmful to both the environment and people.
For example, there are modular homes with metal structures; a very economical and easy-to-assemble system, similar to the plasterboard system, with which metal box-like houses are erected very quickly and then covered with expanded polystyrene. This material is not breathable at all and has low durability, making it a poor ally for building a house, much less an eco-friendly one.
Despite all this, prefabrication in ecological architecture has a strong market presence, and the companies that produce it have grown in recent years following the construction sector crisis in our country.
Artisanal Eco Firms
At the other end of the spectrum for eco-friendly architects in Spain, we find firms, usually small, that try to survive the competitiveness generated by the aforementioned large ecological architecture companies.
These are artisanal firms, meaning they work with entirely ecological and natural materials and construction techniques, but because of this, they encounter problems with regulations, methodology, and rigor.
Sometimes, because products and costs are variable depending on what happens on site, market conditions, etc., costs and budgets can be altered and modified, generating a certain distrust among clients towards the professional sector and making them prefer the security of a large company with strict controls and standardized prices.
Hybrid Firms
This would be the case for our firm, as it operates halfway between the professionalism and rigor of large companies and the exclusive, artisanal, and close treatment of firms that work custom-made for each client. We work with a philosophy of closeness to the client, to the family building a home for life, and under the principles of ecological, sustainable, self-sufficient, and healthy architecture.
For us, it is important to ensure client comfort and satisfaction, always respecting principles of environmental respect and committing to the future through sustainable architecture.
Rigorous cost calculation is extremely important to us, and we always finalize the contract with the builder, as well as the prices and timelines of the work, before starting.
We aim for the architecture we build to be very durable, well-designed bioclimatically, to have minimal or even zero consumption, and to use 100% ecological or natural materials.
As we have said, ensuring client satisfaction and comfort is paramount for us. Therefore, we must respect their maximum budget, weighing every decision and adjusting the total m2, efficiency, and natural materials to this budget ceiling, which is usually set by the bank, to ensure all our projects are viable.
Multi-family Housing
Public Tenders vs. Private Developments
In the field of multi-family housing, eco-friendly architects in Spain still face some difficulties.
It is true that little by little, city councils and policies are becoming more aware and committed to ecological architecture, but we are still far from the levels of sustainable multi-family housing construction seen in other Northern European countries.
Generally, the process for building multi-family housing stems either from public tenders or private developments seeking maximum profit.
In the first case, city councils or public entities launching housing tenders rarely establish ecological or low-consumption architecture requirements for their buildings. This makes competition very high for eco-friendly architects in Spain, as they compete under different parameters compared to other participating firms.
In the second case, private developers seek maximum profit and prices that make their construction investment profitable. This is achieved if the investment cost is minimal and the maximum possible square meters are sold at market price.
There does seem to be some interest from developers in including efficiency as an added value in their projects. However, this added value must never exceed the average market price because the end client still does not value it enough to pay more for it.
In Madrid, for example, a group of people decided to undertake a private housing development for a multi-family building with nearly zero consumption.
This is a co-housing project by the Entrepatios cooperative, which embodies a philosophy of life where future residents, together with an architecture studio, design all aspects related to the space they will inhabit through a participatory process.
This development aims to be the first residential building in Spain with nearly zero energy consumption thanks to the installation of solar panels on the rooftop and one of the few in Madrid built with a wooden structure.
The design also includes a system that collects rainwater and recycles water, which will save approximately 750,000 liters per year, in addition to a controlled double-flow mechanical ventilation system that will prevent external pollutants from entering thanks to a filter.
On the other hand, we have, for example, the architecture firm VA Arquitectos, which recently completed a multi-family housing building with zero consumption.
This is the Thermos Building, by Promociones Las Provincias, and it is considered the first Passivhaus certified residential block in Spain. It features 29 free-market homes and is located in the Pamplona Soto de Lezkairu neighborhood.
Regulations and Initiatives
Before concluding, we cannot forget to mention certain legal or regulatory aspects that eco-friendly architects in Spain must face and understand.
At the European Level
At the European level, reducing energy consumption and using energy from renewable sources in the building sector could enable the European Union to comply with the Kyoto Protocol, as well as its commitment to reduce total greenhouse gas emissions by 20% by 2020 compared to 1990 levels.
It appears that before the end of 2018, the European Parliament, along with the European Commission and the European Council, must establish guidelines to meet these commitments.
On the one hand, to comply with the Paris Agreement 2020, the renewed plan that replaces the current Kyoto Protocol and seeks to minimize carbon emissions and toxic gases that contribute to climate change.
The European Parliament is making significant progress and advocating for the use of renewable energies, as the project raises the percentage of renewable energy use from 27% to 35% by 2030. Furthermore, it protects self-consumption and ends the so-called “sun tax” that the Spanish government implemented to widespread criticism.
At the Spanish Level
In Spain, the regulation that governs everything is the Technical Building Code, known as CTE.
This text presents various documents outlining the needs and obligations that must be met and respected when building, as well as references to regulations imposed by the European Union.
In recent years, the Technical Building Code has included numerous sections on energy efficiency that must be applied when constructing any building. The regulation increasingly emphasizes energy saving for erecting new buildings or renovating homes.
Additionally, eco-friendly architects in Spain must ensure the sustainability and energy efficiency of the building:
– Installing renewable energy sources and systems.
– Installing airtight windows that insulate against cold and heat, allowing for savings in climate control and especially in lighting during daylight hours.
– Installing rainwater collection and purification systems.
– Installing solar panels.
– Installing passive ventilation systems, combined with mechanical ones to save costs.
– Building with well-insulated walls or walls with high thermal inertia.
– Correctly orienting the building and rooms.
More specifically, the major challenges for the construction sector in the near future in Spain are related to the so-called 2020 Strategy.
This is a plan that aims to:
– Reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20% compared to 1990 levels.
– Increase the use of renewable energies by 20%.
– Increase energy efficiency by 20%.
Furthermore, Spain must also comply with the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (2010/31/EC) for the implementation by 2020 of nearly zero-energy buildings (NZEB).
The idea is that by December 31, 2020, all new buildings constructed will be nearly zero-energy buildings, although the regulation was already applied to new buildings owned and occupied by public authorities from the end of 2018.
Finally, and in anticipation of all these changes in construction, it is expected that by the end of 2018, an update to the Basic Document for Energy Saving (DB HE) of the Technical Building Code will be necessary.
This update will revise the requirements and regulations so that buildings constructed after its entry into force minimize their energy consumption (50% lower than currently required), increase the quality of the building and its installations, and incorporate renewable energies. That is, they will pay attention to their demand, and consequently, their CO2 emissions can reach values close to zero.
As you can see, the outlook for eco-friendly architects in Spain, although it may seem complicated at present, has a guaranteed future thanks to increasing awareness and new regulations that favor this type of construction.
For our part, we will continue to fight for and commit to ecological construction in the residential sector. Without a doubt, choosing to build a zero-consumption home with natural materials is a safe bet for the future in the context of climate change we are currently facing.