Oslo Havn

For the third time, the Swiss research institute Empa is awarding prizes to international projects that have been carried out with aerogel materials. Both renovation projects that have already been realised and planning projects by students from all over the world are awarded in two categories. Energy efficiency, the preservation of the historic appearance and the originality of the solution on the buildings are evaluated.

Our Aerogel high-performance insulating plaster was able to convince the expert jury all along the line, as the submitted entry by architects Hille Melbye and Kristin Jarmund from Oslo (Norway) achieved 3rd place thanks to the use of Fixit 222 insulating plaster. The "Skur 38" harbour building in Oslo, built in 1915, was refurbished and converted for two years (from 2020 to 2022) according to the principles of sustainability, energy efficiency, circular economy and the BREEAM NOR standard, and now forms the new heart of the Oslo harbour.

The historic façade has been upgraded to energy class B using our innovative Fixit Aerogel high performance damp proofing, achieving BREEAM Excellent level - all without compromising the listed appearance of the building. The building's colour scheme in two muted shades of green blends in with the surroundings and creates a visual link between the elements. In the further refurbishment, existing materials were reused - where possible and appropriate - combined with new technologies and reinterpreted. A fine example of this is the old mahogany timbers from the port director's office: these now adorn the new canteen as a modern wall element. 

Through the combination of technologically innovative solutions, excellent expertise in even the smallest details, and perfect cooperation between the most diverse trades, the Skur 38 renovation project in Oslo makes a statement in terms of the combination of history & modernity and thus also convinced the expert jury of the Aerogel Architecture Award 2023.