Excursion: Transsolar KlimaEngineering 

The first stop on the tour took the group to the offices of Transsolar, a climate engineering company that sees itself as a bridge between architecture, and technology with regard to climate friendliness, sustainability, and comfort. Presenting various projects, Felix Thumm, partner at Transsolar, showed us how sustainable architecture can work in practice—for example, through the use of PV modules and intelligent building technology. Instead of traditional air conditioning systems, Transsolar preferably relies on natural air circulation using ventilation systems, ceiling fans, and the targeted control of cold and warm air flows. It was pointed out to the group that renovations or technical measures often only make sense if they are used correctly and comprehensively by users. Ideally, buildings should be able to produce most of the energy they need themselves, in line with the net-zero principle.
Despite technological advances, the market for climate-friendly construction remains challenging. High costs, limited budgets, and a lack of willingness to take risks on the part of construction planners are slowing down change. Even small-scale approaches, such as plug-in solar devices, often fail to be implemented. Transsolar emphasizes that photovoltaic modules should ideally be taken into account during the planning phase of buildings in order to reduce the effort, costs, and implementation responsibility for private individuals. According to Felix Thumm one hurdle to the widespread use of climate-friendly construction methods is still the low price of energy. For a more sustainable future, a general rethink must take place at the level of legislation, clients, and consumers.