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© Adrien Barakat
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The Challenge

Located in Corsico, in the province of Milan, Italy, Saint-Gobain’s Habitat Lab is a multipurpose research center that showcases the company’s innovative philosophy of building design — one that achieves a carefully calculated balance between quality of life and environmental sustainability. The Habitat Lab was built at an existing Saint-Gobain site, blending renovation and new construction to create a 1,200-square-meter (13,000-square-foot) facility with a goal of achieving LEED® certification standards. 

To accomplish this, Saint-Gobain brought together the latest and most advanced building materials and practices from the companies in the Saint-Gobain family that serve the construction sector — including SageGlass®, a developer and manufacturer of electronically tintable glass.

In the Habitat Lab, SageGlass contributes to the nearly net-zero energy usage of the innovative building and achieves the important goal of providing comfort to the building occupants.

SageGlass® was instrumental in reaching LEED® standards and gives on top of that a nice feeling of coolness for the summer time!
Gianni Scotti, General Delegate Mediterranean
Saint-Gobain

The Solution

The Habitat Lab is the first example of the “Multi-Comfort” concept from Saint-Gobain. This program integrates a portfolio of building solutions from the Saint-Gobain Group to help ensure an optimal combination of operational efficiency, personal comfort and sustainability.

The Habitat Lab is highly energy efficient. It provides superior energy savings, lower emissions and maximum comfort. In fact, its actual consumption is close to zero thanks to a solar photovoltaic system that generates 22 MWh of on-site power. Further energy savings come from the use of SageGlass glazing, which allows clear exterior views and maximum natural light while controlling heat gain in an intelligent way. Depending on outside temperatures, light levels and the time of day, the tint of SageGlass can be automatically adjusted to minimize the need for additional heating and cooling all year long without compromising the comfort of the building’s occupants.

 

The Benefits

As part of its research mission, the Habitat Lab serves as a “building workshop” where the effects and outcomes of new building materials and techniques can be closely evaluated. To this end, the Habitat Lab monitors energy performance and other quality of life factors, all in real-time.

The center is available to organizations, universities and others interested in researching and developing new materials and construction solutions in collaboration with Saint-Gobain. In addition, the Habitat Lab provides valuable field training opportunities for designers and application engineers. It belongs to a network of Saint-Gobain training centers located throughout Italy, where the industry’s best and brightest can explore both theoretical and practical applications of the construction materials and techniques that will shape our future — including SageGlass.