Handover of daycare centre to Kolding Municipality
New extension to daycare centre in Kolding Municipality with a low carbon footprint
Concept Living has just delivered a 600 m² extension to Børnehuset Ådalen, Valhalla division, in Viuf in Kolding Municipality. The project was delivered as a design-and-build contract and stands out in particular for its notably low climate footprint, which already meets the expected CO₂ limit values for 2029.
Timber modules and screw foundations deliver a significantly lower CO₂ footprint
The extension consists of prefabricated timber modules housing three nursery groups, an administration area and shared spaces. The façade is made of heat-treated wood, which both reduces CO₂ emissions and creates a harmonious interplay with the existing building.
To reduce the carbon footprint, screw foundations were also chosen instead of concrete, and focused efforts were made to reduce overall material consumption – including by minimising the number of box partition walls.
The collaboration has been characterised by a shared ambition to create a daycare institution that both fits into its surroundings and demonstrates how new construction and a low carbon footprint can go hand in hand.
– Nikolaj M. Grønbæch, Head of Design Studio at Concept Living
The result is an LCA calculation of 6.4 kg CO₂-eq./m²/year, which exactly matches the upcoming limit values for 2029.
New emission factors could have produced even lower figures
The LCA was prepared based on the emission factors that applied at the time of the building permit. Since then, new factors have come into effect, reducing the CO₂ impact from electricity and heating. If these figures had been permitted for use, the extension’s LCA would have been as low as 4.3 kg CO₂-eq./m²/year.
This does not change the fact that the current calculation is very strong and shows that we can already deliver construction that meets the requirements of the future.
– Thomas Kildeby Pedersen, Certified Sustainability Consultant at Concept Living
Architecture and climate go hand in hand
Tegnestuen Mejeriet, which was responsible for the initial design, emphasises that the extension is one of their most ambitious projects both architecturally and in terms of climate performance.
The narrow, elongated plot placed particular demands on the design, but the solution has been an extension that follows the offsets of the existing building and creates exciting spatial qualities with large overhangs that connect indoors and outdoors.
Although the new building is in timber and the existing one in brick, a clear dialogue emerges between the two. The project shows that good architecture and climate ambitions can go hand in hand.
– Bo Rattenborg Jørgensen, Partner at Mejeriet
Facts: CO₂-eq./m²/year
- Measures a building’s total carbon footprint over its entire lifetime
- Institutions in Denmark:
- Limit value 2025: 8.0 kg CO₂-eq./m²/year
- Expected limit value 2029: 6.4 kg CO₂-eq./m²/year
- The lower the figure, the smaller the building’s carbon footprint
Photographer: Tina Liv
