Assembled on site in 2 days, this wooden rooftop apartment project merges sustainability and digital fabrication with a harmonic typological and aesthetic integration in the core of the historical Eixample.

EG69 is the first of a series of highly sustainable penthouse apartments that will be built in the central Eixample of Barcelona. The developer -La Casa por el Tejado- started construction of steel structure 3d modular penthouse apartments in the unused urban pockets of the central example in 2013. EG69 will be the first project designed using 2d assembly light laminated wood frame system and semi-passive house insulation achieving an A level in energy efficiency rates.

The proposal, both typologically and compositionally, is a re-interpretation of a classic central example unit. The patio that would divide the dwelling in two areas-night and day- is re-shaped and treated as a glass box to achieve a more continuous and flexible typology. The two facades are also re-interpretations of the traditional public and domestic Eixample façades. To the street side, the façade assumes the compositional vertical axis of the existing building and inverts the location of the blinds to create a ventilated façade were and expanded copper layer replaces the traditional painted wood blinds. To the courtyard side, the typical rolling wood blinds build a sun and intimacy protection uniform layer to the bedrooms in the lower level and to the terrace in the upper level.

The construction system searches a high level of industrialization, the use of environmentally responsible materials and an optimal thermic behaviour. Walls and slabs are 100% industrialized: façade layers, windows, structure, insulation, MEP and interior finishes arrive to the site assembled in single elements that are erected to its final position using a truck crane. All material solutions combine highly sustainable materials to create an extremely light building.

EG 69 Green Housing

Project duration: 2014-2016
Promotor: Private
Type: Housing
Dwellings: 2
Area: 200 m2
Budget: 0,2 M €
Site: Barcelona, Spain
Certified: A (CTE)
Awards: Barcelona Building Construmat Awards 2017, honorable mention
Design team: Joel Pera and Oriol Vives
Collaborators: Carlos Casas Tardà (MEP), C97 Arquitectes i Associats (structures), Societat Orgànica (environmental consulting) and AT3 Oller-Peña (quantity surveyor)
Constructor: La casa por el tejado
Photography: José Hevia and Oriol Vives