Zentrum Alpines Bauen (Alpine Building Centre) focuses on research and on transferring research results and technical expertise to business and industry. In three Working Groups (Energy Systems, Building Envelopes and Building Systems, and Settlement Systems), we research and develop transferable solutions to current challenges in building and to future-ready settlement development, especially in the Alpine region.
The Following Questions Are in Focus:
How can today’s building practice be further developed to be resilient to the challenges of climate change, while being land- and resource-efficient and circular?
How can the future energy supply, through the broadest possible use of renewable energy and efficiently operated buildings and energy networks, deliver security of supply, affordability, and CO2 reduction?
What contribution do building systems, digitalization, multifunctional building-component systems, and building envelopes make to reducing land consumption and to affordability, energy and resource efficiency, functionality, and circularity?
How can existing and future settlements become more compact, more mixed-use in how they are used, and more efficient in mobility and public services?
The Building Envelopes and Building Systems Working Group currently focuses on modern building envelope systems, (timber) construction systems, and multifunctional building-component systems. Through digitalization, standardization, and a high degree of prefabrication, construction systems can offer short construction times, low noise exposure, higher quality, efficiency in construction and operation, and affordability. A particular focus is on extending existing buildings to reduce land consumption, as well as on digitalizing and automating the planning process and improving building circularity. Multifunctional systems are currently being developed primarily for building envelopes (façades) for new construction and renovation.
The development of prototypes, products, systems, and services, as well as the examination of the feasibility and goal alignment of solutions, can be carried out through different project types (direct contracts with us or with expert teams we assemble, cooperative funded research, funded development projects). We advise you and identify suitable tools and partners for your needs. For funded research and development, we are happy to guide you during the pre-project phase (idea, eligibility for funding, scientific methods, required competencies, and tests/inspections), form project consortia together with you, prepare funding applications, and lead joint funded projects or participate in consortia. As part of knowledge transfer, we offer technical presentations on our research and development results, the state of the art, potential future developments, and our prototypes. In workshops, we support development projects, help address technical questions, assist in defining research and development objectives and questions, or provide general preparation for research initiatives. In trainings, we provide ready-to-use information packages on our research and development results or the state of the art, or we develop targeted training offerings together with you.
The Settlement Systems Working Group uses geoinformatics spatial and simulation models to support decision-making for the sustainable development of settlement areas. The current focus is on densification potential and sustainable land management, taking the residential environment, mobility, and energy into account. In this way, the Working Group contributes to future-ready, sustainable, and livable settlements in Alpine and other resource-constrained regions: spatial compactness, mixed use, and traffic efficiency with short distances.
The Centre for Alpine Construction is partly funded by the Province of Salzburg. The majority of its funding comes from cooperative and contract research.
The Advisory Board consists of representatives of stakeholders from industry, politics, public administration, and academia. Advisory Board members serve as discussion partners and advisors on the current and future thematic and structural direction. They represent the public interest in the Center’s funded activities.
If you have general interest, cooperation inquiries, or research and development needs, please contact the Centre Management directly. Contact
If you already have specific ideas for cooperation within the topics of our Working Groups, please contact our Working Group Leads:
Working Group Energy Systems: Klaus Prenninger
Working Group Building Envelopes and Building Systems: Elisabeth Dürnberger
Working Group Settlement Systems: Sabine Gadocha
If you would like to contact our staff directly, you can find them here.
The development of prototypes, products, systems, and services, as well as the examination of the feasibility and goal alignment of solutions, can be carried out through different project types (direct contracts with us or with expert teams we assemble, cooperative funded research, funded development projects). We advise you and identify suitable tools and partners for your needs. For funded research and development, we are happy to guide you during the pre-project phase (idea, eligibility for funding, scientific methods, required competencies, and tests/inspections), form project consortia together with you, prepare funding applications, and lead joint funded projects or participate in consortia. As part of knowledge transfer, we offer technical presentations on our research and development results, the state of the art, potential future developments, and our prototypes. In workshops, we support development projects, help address technical questions, assist in defining research and development objectives and questions, or provide general preparation for research initiatives. In trainings, we provide ready-to-use information packages on our research and development results or the state of the art, or we develop targeted training offerings together with you.
By Zentrum Alpines Bauen prototypes, we mean not only the physical and digital test objects/tools created in the course of research projects, but also solutions that have reached a level of development that allows them to be used in, or as part of, productive systems. This includes planning materials, software tools, and validated simulation models with evidence of practical applicability. Further information can be found here.
Zentrum Alpines Bauen has mobile measurement equipment, simulation software, and the experimental building with the Twin²Sim façade test rig (Living Lab). Further information can be found here.
Research projects and results that reflect the breadth of our expertise and activities can be found here.
Scientific and non-scientific publications, along with download links to materials, can be found here.
Can Zentrum Alpines Bauen Also Manage Projects Without Publishing the Results?
Yes, this is possible as part of contract research. Contract research is the right choice whenever you do not want to publish results, when there is no time to wait for funding decisions, or when the question does not fit the constraints of funded research due to its scope or focus.
Zentrum Alpines Bauen is happy to take on such assignments and ensures the involvement of necessary competencies from academia and practice that are not available in-house. Confidentiality is a given. Get in touch with our Centre Leadership or the Working Group Leads.
Zentrum Alpines Bauen supports the development of a façade system as part of contract research or funded projects. We are happy to advise you on your options, support you in developing the project concept, forming a consortium, and preparing the application. Please get in touch with us.
Zentrum Alpines Bauen has a multifunctional building-envelope test rig for holistic investigation of complex building envelopes and building services engineering. Here you can find further information on the experimental building, the building-envelope test rig, and the multifunctional lab “Twin2Sim.”
Zentrum Alpines Bauen offers tailored training or webinars for your staff and partners. To ensure a strong fit, we develop customized one-on-one training sessions or courses together with you, tailored to your needs. Please get in touch with us.