Veitvet school, Oslo

Project description

Veitvet School is built as a public-private partnership where the contractor was chosen through a competition with negotiations.

The project consists of a new elementary and middle school for grades 1 to 10, including a multi-use hall.

The main building material is wood. Sedum mats are planned for the roof surface, to give life and create strong colour variations throughout the seasons. The roofs slope gently, and the space between the roof and the indoor ceilings will be used for ductwork. The building has a simple and clear form and is well adapted to the site. The design also facilitates good connections between the interior and exterior.

The school buildings and schoolyard are designed to open out to students and employees arriving on the footpath from the west. Each grade has its own entrance with easy access to the appropriate outside space. The school´s "heart" – the amphitheatre – opens up to the west and gives an inviting impression of the school.

The occupants can see through the building from north to south, securing a visual connection between the main entrance and the evening entrance.

The green areas are tied together with the sports facility, a schoolyard, a play area and a square. This creates large, attractive outdoor areas that motivate the children to take on outdoor activities in healthy surroundings. A meadow towards Østre Aker road lies to the south of the school facility. Green, vegetation-rich areas border the whole school. Bicycle parking is located next to the school’s entrances and beside the Veitvetbanen sports field.

Veitvet School satisfies the requirements of passive house standard according to NS3701. The project also achieves energy class A.

Low carbon strategies

Veitvet School is planned according to FutureBuilt´s criteria of a minimum of 50 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to a conventional building of today´s standard.

The location of Veitvet School is favourable with respect to low greenhouse gas emissions from transport. The proximity to public transport is very good, which creates a low starting point for transport emissions. Limited parking places and reserved parking for electric cars with charging points will contribute to a further reduction. Good facilities for the use of bicycles, such as bicycle parking, changing areas, showers and the upgrading of existing cycle and pedestrian paths to ensure safety and security also contribute to reduced automobile use.

The careful selection of robust materials based on their greenhouse gas emissions in production results in a saving of emissions of this building when compared to the reference building. The following materials have been selected:

• Floor slabs and foundations of low-carbon concrete
• Load-bearing columns and beams of wood in the top floor
• Floor slabs of bubble-deck or HD-elements using low-carbon concrete.
• Wood roof structure
• Structural wall slabs in concrete
• All other walls in wood studwork
• Plasterboard with a high recycled content
• Wood external cladding
• Wooden windows with aluminium cladding.

The building´s heat loss is limited to a minimum through an integrated design process where the building´s form (form factor), glass areas, U-values and cold bridges were optimised. Requirements for air-tightness at 50 Pa has been set to 0,5 ac/h, which is expected to be fully achievable based on Skanska’s experience with airtight buildings. Placing the school and multi-use hall in the same building has minimized the building´s outer surface in relation to its heated BRA. Priority has been given to the indoor climate, temperature, air quality and daylight in the placement and shaping of the building´s mass.

Thermal mass in the floors, foundation and concrete walls are utilized. Ceilings have been designed to safeguard acoustic and use/maintenance considerations. At the same time the thermal mass of these elements is maximised. The primary heat source is district heating. Initiatives such as an energy efficient lighting system, solar heat collector and effective energy monitoring and control minimize the need for delivered energy.  

Key Figures

Project Information