Summer comfort: offices, schools, how to improve working and learning conditions with sunshades

The Minister of Energy Transition, Agnès Pannier-Runacher, unveiled the Sobriety Plan II on Monday June 19. Among the 14 measures, we retain the limitation to 26°C of air conditioning, energy-intensive systems but very necessary for the health of users, particularly in offices.

To reduce the use of air conditioning without affecting health or the quality of life at work, simple or even passive thermal regulation solutions such as sunshades are available. Explanations.

For Serge Chalmandrier, KINGSPAN LIGHT + AIR ventilation solutions engineering manager: “When it's 34° outside, the temperature in a school or office with bay windows directly exposed to the sun's rays can rise, depending on the region, to 38 or even 42° at least! »

Glazed sunshade on the facade – VINCI offices in Nanterre (92)

Summer comfort in tertiary buildings: what obligations?

In new buildings, the new RE2020 environmental regulations include for the first time the notion of summer comfort in the standards to be respected. To ensure the thermal comfort of occupants, RE2020 has implemented an indicator degree-hours of discomfort (DH), with a calculation method that takes into account the effects of climate change on buildings. All sectors of activity are concerned, both private and public. We are thinking in particular of office buildings, schools, hospitals but also establishments open to the public such as Congress Centers, etc.

In renovation, if there is no summer comfort obligation strictly speaking, it is the reality principle that prevails! The recurrence and worsening of climatic shocks and the surge in energy bills are encouraging operators to target the most energy-efficient thermal regulation solutions.

Sunshade, how does it work…

Equipped with fixed or adjustable slats installed in the surfacing, the sunshades allow optimal management of energy inputs, they block part of the solar radiation and thus limit the excessive heat input in summer, or provide natural light in winter.

Sunshade solutions integrate perfectly into renovation projects and meet architectural, thermal management and lighting expectations.

For Frédéric Jullien, general manager KINGSPAN LIGHT + AIR: “We expect strong growth in this segment. These solutions make it possible to respond to the economic and environmental challenges that buildings must respond to today. The acceleration of extreme weather phenomena and the surge in energy prices are encouraging construction and real estate players to find solutions to improve living, working or learning conditions, optimize expenses and reduce costs. carbon emissions linked to the operation of the building. A trend is emerging for office buildings which are massively equipping themselves with sunshading solutions to preserve the freshness of their buildings while controlling their energy costs. Finally, another important point to emphasize, sunshades, when equipped with photovoltaic panels, can become completely passive energy solutions. Their design is also a real plus for enhancing the architecture of buildings. »

In Nanterre, the BATEG offices – VINCI subsidiary opt for sunshades with photovoltaic panels during their renovation project.

Exemplary project: renovation of the facade of the BATEG office building, a subsidiary of the VINCI group in Nanterre (92) in 2021

BATEG, a construction company, has an office building entirely covered with sunshades to optimize its resistance to heat waves to improve the comfort of its occupants. This solution also makes it possible to reduce the cost of artificial energy linked to air conditioners, which are particularly energy-intensive, and to achieve energy savings.

The consumption of an adjustable sunshade varies depending on the design of the product (kinematics, weight of fillings, aesthetics). It can become a passive solution when the filling integrates photovoltaic solutions, as for the BATEG office building.

In Champier (38), in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, the department of Isère is renovating a college to improve the quality of life at school

Summer comfort in schools is an issue for health and quality of learning for students, who are particularly vulnerable to the heat. For improve thermal insulation and enhance the aesthetics of the building, the department of Isère has chosen to install sunshades on the facade of its college in Champier.

C © KINGSPAN LIGHT + AIR Each classroom is equipped with a manual control to direct the sunshades in order to obscure or further illuminate the room depending on the sun's rays and the outside temperature.

The sunshades also have aesthetic advantages: the colors of the slats installed on the facade of the Champier college recall the wooded environment of the region, to integrate into the landscape. This €820.000 project allows the college to ensure the comfort of its 820 students during heatwaves.

Exemplary project: renovation of the facade of a college in Champier (38) in 2020