Villa Zero – Sweden’s first carbon neutral single-family house to be built in Dalarna
A unique development project has been initiated in Borlänge, Sweden. The goal is to build a carbon neutral single-family house in 2021 with the most sustainable construction technology and building materials of the future; Villa Zero. An interesting part of the project is to evaluate whether it is possible to build single-family houses with the foundation of wood instead of concrete, since the concrete has a bigger impact on the climate. The companies behind the project are Fiskarhedenvillan, Structor and Mondo.
The three collaborating companies found each other through Business opportunities strategic potentials, BOSP, a new international method for increased innovation. The method is driven by Dalarnas Science Park. IUC and ByggDialog Dalarna have been supportive in the financing process and Region Dalarna co-finances.
“I want us to know in three years’ time which materials have the lowest impact on the climate, and then replace our building materials with these more sustainable materials. The project is part of the fact that we as a single-family house supplier will be climate neutral by 2030, says Gunnar Jönsson, CEO Fiskarhedenvillan
A previous single-family house project, Dalarnas Villa with an estimated life span of 100 years, was estimated to be about 100 tonnes of carbon dioxide, so we have a big challenge ahead of us,” continues Gunnar Jönsson.
In the picture: Gabriella Hagman, Gunnar Jönsson and Kristina Hansen
Behind the project there is also Mondo architects who likewise have a great interest in spreading the sustainability issue and developing it in their customer focus.
“We want to invest in the innovative solutions and sustainable materials that will be the obvious choice in the future. It is fantastic to be a part of this project that has been imbued from the start with ambition, knowledge exchange and the common goal with climate-smart construction in focus, says Gabriella Hagman, CEO mondo architects. The project has a great focus on the learning process and Villa Zero has project groups where all participating companies are represented in order for the knowledge to be utilized and reach out to as many people as possible, Gabriella Hagman continues.
Structor Byggteknik is also involved in the project with broad building technology knowledge and genuine interest in sustainability.
“This project is one of those where technology development and collaboration are important pieces of the puzzle to investigate and find sustainable building materials that last over time. I want to be able to offer our customers a new mindset regarding the business and technology, which this project will be able to provide. The biggest challenge in the project will be building technology details and designing a foundation in wood that meets all construction requirements, says Kristina Hansen, Structor Byggteknik.
As part of the learning process, building technology researcher Jonn Are Myhren, Dalarna University comments on the project;
“A single-family house in Europe that is traditionally built in concrete with a life span of 100 years has an emission of about 500 tonnes of carbon dioxide,” says Jonn Are Myhren. In the Villa Zero project, the project partners really raise the bar high and we at Dalarna University will follow it with great enthusiasm.
At Dalarna Science Park, the Bioinno project is run with a focus on forest bioeconomy;
“The learning process in the project will not only affect the companies involved but will spread to subcontractors and colleagues in the industry. The project will enable new innovations in technology and materials in areas such as forest bioeconomy, says Theres Jansson, project manager for BioInno at Dalarna Science Park. I hope and believe that this can be a good example and provide a good opportunity for business development both nationally and internationally,” continues Theres Jansson.
