Projects

The SWICE project, funded by the Swiss Federal Office of Energy’s SWEET programme, explores how changing ways of living, working, and moving in cities can reduce energy demand while improving quality of life. Focusing on the Swiss residential building stock, our research investigates sufficiency and retrofit strategies through human-centric approaches. Building on recent work such as Mind the Acceptability Gap, we integrate lifestyle diversity into energy sufficiency analysis, highlighting how user preferences, social acceptance, and behavioural patterns shape the feasibility and effectiveness of low-energy living and climate policies.

This research project investigates window ventilation—including innovative window technologies—in detail with regard to its various, particularly ventilation-related implications. The study is carried out through four complementary methodological approaches: (1) experimental investigations using real-world tests in a controlled laboratory setting; (2) use, validation, verification, and further development of state-of-the-art simulation tools; (3) application of whole-building energy modelling, calculation, and simulation; and (4) an in-depth analysis of life cycle impacts and ecological footprint.

The research focuses on a data-driven framework for climate-neutral renovation of the EU building stock, linking science, policy, and practice. The title is “Greening and Renovating the EU Building Stock: A Data-Driven Framework for Climate Neutrality”, and will be conducted in two phases at TU Wien and JRC in Ispra, Italy: Develop models to assess the interaction between buildings, emissions and the microclimate, test different hypothetical scenarios of improved measures on the energy demand, and explore building renovation strategies. Scaling the models to the European level, further exploring more accurate calculations of building characteristics and energy demand using machine learning methodologies.

The Re-Use: Wooden House project focuses on the circularity of prefabricated timber components, which are typically used for single-family and small multi-family houses and have both a long tradition and a diverse manufacturing landscape in Austria. The project aims to implement key steps across the entire value chain that both enhance the attractiveness of existing building components as secondary raw materials and prepare future prefabricated houses to be as suitable as possible for reuse.