Energy efficient ventilation systems and components in sport facilities

Building industry is often regarded as a mature and traditionalsector, in which the technological development is not so accelerated as in other cases.The increasing costs for electric energy, heating and climatization,the dramatic environmental issues draw the attention of professionals and experts to those technologicalsolutions, components and devices which are going to represent the immediate future of engineering practices.The attention was drawn to a 16 900 m3 sport facility building with 800 seats to be built in the East sector of Rome, one of the districts in which is higher the needing of social services and sport facilities. This installation is devoted to volley, basket and other sport activities which are becoming popular. The study is focused on the energy performance of the envelope and the system for climatization if more sustainable technologies and materials were adopted to run the installation. Solutionslike a better orientation, a new kind of brickwork, a better choice of the glazing surfaces, new concept for heating and cooling are already known or available on the market, but the traditional attitude of designers or professionals, the insufficient information of public bodiesdevoted to control and other factors affecting these techniques are obstacles to their diffusion. Prudential evaluations of the introduction of these solutions lead to a minor primary energy consumption of 30% as a basis.The facility is run by Municipality, then a 10 years amortizationperiod is perfectly tolerable, expecially if the operationof the building is foreseen to be at least 30 years.