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MBIArch Notes: Energy & Sustainability

Building Technologies

Several experts have been invited to lecture as a part of the Energy & Sustainability course, led by Adjunct Professor Javier García-Germán, including sessions with Aleksandar Ivancic and Juan Gallostra.

As described by García-Germán, “This course considers the discussion on thermodynamics and sustainability as an opportunity for architecture and urbanism to rethink its traditional apparatus. The aim of the course is to merge the scientific and technical knowledge on energy and sustainability with its cultural contextualization, revising both its historical background and its relevance for contemporary architectural practice.”

Last week Matthias Rudolph, a project leader at Transsolar, lectured to complete the different points of view provided to the students in this subject. Rudolph has 11 years of experience in the field of energy and sustainability, and has taught widely in both Europe and the US.

During the class, Matthias focused on the importance of environmental inputs in ensuring projects energy efficiency. He explained the decisiveness of each step of the design process in achieving a high level of energetic performance in buildings and how this concept can match the specific necessities of each program.

While the use of examples and completed projects were used to reiterate these different possibilities, students were also tasked with a short group project which was helpful in underlining and clarifying ideas, as well as allowing students to reflect on the concepts they had just been introduced.


Transsolar is a climate engineering firm founded in Germany in 1992 with offices in Stuttgart, Munich and New York. They develop and validate climate and energy concepts through “the recognition that environmental conditions are influenced by all aspects and stages of design”.


With Transsolar's integration of qualities such as daylight, natural ventilation, air quality, thermal comfort and energy demand in building systems, Rudolph’s intervention in the course has provided students a critical perspective on the real concepts and meaning behind green architecture. 

Matilde González Asteinza
Teaching Assistant, Energy & Building Technolgies Department
2010-2011 MBIArch Alumni and Building Technologies Award winner 

*Photos by Timothy Brennan, more images available on BIArch's Flickr Page

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