Fórum architektury - 2/2001 summary
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Low-Energy Environmentally-Friendly Buildings Introduction The central theme of this issue of Fórum architektury a stavebnictví, which brings together a broad spectrum of information, is the links between buildings (both housing and offices), energy and the environment. We are not so much trying to prove that there is indeed a very close tie between these, but rather to show various ways of dealing with energy in residential buildings, to thrown light on approaches and procedures that can lead to energy saving of and, at the same time, to show that the appropriate application of the general principles of low-energy buildings can also improve the interiors and the comfort of those living there. Low-energy designs can also have other pay-offs: if we can do more with a smaller amount of energy, we will significantly save energy costs and by reducing our energy demand we can do our bit in the world-wide effort to limit damage to the environment. Such approaches should come to be taken for granted during our preparations for joining the European Union. Problems with energy are now making themselves felt throughout Europe. It is not just a question of temporary swings in the price of oil, but rather of completely new approaches to the use of energy. The world-wide shift from a situation in which energy use is controlled, or at least influenced by the state, to one where energy is a commodity whose price is set by the market is an unstoppable process, as the member states of the EU have recently accepted. Energy conservation is a process that it is difficult to unify. The wide range of approaches and attitudes was well demonstrated by the fruitful debate during the Energy Efficiency Business Week ´2000 international conference and exhibition, which took place recently in Prague. Energy conservation can almost always be improved, but there is not always a single easy answer. Solutions vary from case to case, even though the underlying motives are the same. This is abundantly clear from the following pages. It is obvious that we already know the principles of low-energy architecture and that they are beginning to be generally available. However, the key to success and, at the same time, the most difficult task of all, is to put these general principles into practice in fully functional buildings. The concept of this issue is the result of close collaboration with SEVEn, the Energy Efficiency Centre. We did not set out to evaluate developments in contemporary architecture and we admit that the contributions included here may not all be attractive from the architectural point of view. Our main focus of interest was energy and each of the articles has something useful to offer an interesting idea, a new approach or a wealth of experience. Jaroslav Maroušek

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