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NewsTOP-E Young Engineers Meeting 2009
The TOP-E Young Engineers meeting was hosted by Grontmij | Carl in Copenhagen. The participants were challenged to design the most cost-effective low energy building. The game ignited several discussions concerning building energy, and the four buildings and solutions presented were with quite different approaches.
In the afternoon the Young Engineers exchanged experiences on different technologies and projects across Europe. This gave a fruitful insight into the different methods and challenges in each country. Afterwards the participants attended a dinner at the new Royal Theatre Building overlooking the harbour. Saturday morning there was a tour of the new Concert Hall at the Danish Radio Broadcasting Company.
SUCESSFULL YOUNG ENGINEERS MEETING IN COPENHAGEN
Dutch Construction Award to Tope E member Grontmij Technical Management. Dutch Construction Award for project Rijkswaterstaat Westraven. In februari 2009 the head office ‘Westraven’ of the Dutch Department of Public works (Rijkswaterstaat) won the Dutch Construction award in the category Buildings. Tope E member Grontmij Technical Management was responsible for the design of the building services in this buidling, which is a typical exapple of integrated design. Jury chairman Karla Peijs commented: “The entirely renewed building is a wonderful beacon in the complex urban architectural environment. The building stands for progress and transparency”. The jury also highly valued the sustainability of the building. Integral building The new office is an example of integral building. The old office tower originates from 1973 and used to be a so-called “sick building” dealing with problems such as a bad indoor climate, asbestos and a leaking house front. The existing tower is surrounded by new construction of low building wings. The visionary architectural concept of the architect’s firm Cepezed required an innovative approach to installation which Grontmij realised. Sustainable techniques In the building many sustainable techniques have been used such as ‘concrete core activation’. This is a way of cooling and warming the building that uses the building mass and which is integrated in the floor construction. This technique is combined with energy storage in the ground and the utilization of warmth pumps. By storing warmth or cold in the ground and using this in another season the indoor climate is kept to the desired temperature with minimum energy use. A passive intelligent building The goal of this building was to build an intelligent building that can adapt to different uses and different external influences. Examples of this built-in intelligence are:
Biodynamic lighting Ir. M.G. (Mauk) de Wildt UK topE Member RW GREGORY joins RPS GROUP PLC. On 12th March 2008 the United Kingdom topE member RW Gregory LLP was acquired by RPS Group plc and will trade from hereon as RPS Gregory. RPS is an International Consultancy providing advice upon the development of natural resources, land and property, the management of the environment and the health and safety of people. Ian Thomason , Operations Director for RPS Gregory’s Manchester Office and past Chairman of topE said: “We are delighted to be joining forces with RPS who are one of the most respected multi-disciplinary consultancies. The existing services offered by RPS in the Planning and Development, Environmental and Energy fields are a fantastic fit with the Building Services Engineering and Sustainability/Low Carbon Engineering Consultancy undertaken by ourselves and we see great potential for our clients to benefit from the additional capability that the business now has going forward.” UPCOMING YOUNG ENGINEERS MEETING 2008, OSLO
In May 2008 Young Engineers from the top E firms will meet in Oslo, Norway, for discussions on engineering challanges. The Young Engineers will present various topics from their present design projects highlighting the various M&E solutions in different aspects. More details to come on the agenda. NEW CHAIRMAN
In his programme speech Pedro Aguilera announced his commitment to the network by continuing the initiatives proposed by the previous Chairman Ian Thomason, and by starting new initiatives for the benefit of the members and the network as a whole. Pedro Aguilera was, together with his farther Benedicto Aguilera, founding members of top E in 1989-1990 and was for a long period in the nineties highly active in the exchange of technical knowledge in his function as Board Member for the grouping. The home office for the new Chairman is Aguilera Ingenieros SA, Madrid. |
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top E - secretatiat, Omega Court, Rue Jules Cockx, 8-10, 1160 Brussels. BELGIUM |
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At the annual general meeting in September 2007, the delegates of the members elected Pedro Aguilera new Chairman for the coming year.