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VIDEO

Dive into the world of solar architecture with our videos!
Clear, engaging, and accessible content for professionals, students, and curious minds alike. Let the power of the sun inspire you.

BIPV Status Report 2024

The “BIPV Status Report 2024”, developed by SUPSI in collaboration with the Becquerel Institute, aims to provide actionable insights and guidance for stakeholders across the industry, from...

Cost-benefits comparison of Swiss BIPV case studies

The building skin surfaces represent a vast potential for decentralising renewable energy investments and...

Solar potential estimation models for facades

In architectural project development and real estate investments, accessing comprehensive information is...

Solaris #9

Currently, outwardly inclined photovoltaic modules are particularly in vogue. In today's competition projects they are integrated as parapet strips, facade panels...

Association for self-consumption (ZEV) – what is it about?

Implementing a photovoltaic installation is a first step towards shifting away from fossil fuels. To...

Solaris #7 – throwback to May 2023

Countless roofs and façades in urban areas are suitable for photovoltaic systems. But a strong solar expansion is not just a question of quantity, the quality and thus the design is also…

ENHANCE Project

The project dealt with indoor and outdoor testing, with a detailed characterization of the modules in the laboratory and the measurement of of the energy production of coloured versus reference modules in the...

Solaris #2 – throwback to September 2018

Architects like to hide solar installations behind roof edges or layers of paint. This thematic notebook wants to go further. It asks...

Solaris #1 – throwback to January 2018

A real revolution is taking place. For the first time, the Solaris residential building combines the high living standards of Zurich architects with...

Paper Review of External Integrated Systems as PVSDs

Photovoltaic shading devices (PVSDs) protect buildings from direct solar radiation and overheating while...

ATLAS-FeliCity online Tool

Retrofitting the heritage buildings (listed or not) is a complex task due to legal, financial, and technical barriers. The decision makers often lack a...

Solaris #8

This publication reveals the existence of other noteworthy buildings in and around Basel that generate electricity from the sun. They are renovations and new buildings of different sizes...

Solar Installations And Regulatory Plans

On the 10th of May, a course was held for municipalities, planners and professionals on the subject of the...

ePiz – Multifunctional BIPV facade

The BIPV facade cladding system developed under the BIPVBOOST project was named ePIZ. It consists of a composite element, obtained by...

Indian BIPV Report 2022: Status and Roadmap

The "Indian BIPV Report 2022: Status and Roadmap" has been developed by SUPSI-ISAAC and...

Indian BIPV roadmap

Unlike standalone PV utility systems and rooftop solar systems, the penetration of the BIPV sector in the market requires direct renewable...

Solar constructions in India

The real estate sector in India is the second-highest employment generator in India after the agriculture sector. In the coming...

Photovoltaic sector and its potential in India

The “Indian BIPV Report 2022: Status and Roadmap” has been developed by SUPSI-ISAAC and CSIR-NIIST. It...

SDME 2021 – Team X-House

The BIPV design of the project includes a photovoltaic roof integrated system and a photovoltaic enclosure integrated system. These.....

Solaris #6

When the sun shines on it, the most beautiful solar module ever made shines in an infinite range of colours. After a long period of planning and implementation, the Office for...

SDME 2021 – Team HARMONY

The main design concept of our house is adapting the Emirati culture and their housing ideas by upgrading it with modern techniques that ...

A HISTORICAL BUILDING ENERGY RETROFIT ATLAS

To preserve the cultural landscape in the Alps and reach the ambitious climates targets will only be possible if we intensify our efforts in the...

Urban BIPV retrofit potential of facades

When renovating existing buildings, the energy retrofit of building envelopes is often implemented. Typically, this intervention is considered by building owners...

BIPV meets colour

The execution of Building-Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV) facades with black and blue conventional modules has represented a first step of innovation...

Extended Reality and BIPV: Survey

Construction industry is embracing Extended Reality (XR) to improve efficiency, collaboration and safety, as well as to enhance client experience. Extended Reality is a broad concept...

Solaris #5

In the Alps, air is fresh and clear and the efficiency of solar installations high. This special edition examines the compatibility of photovoltaic modules with the mountain landscape...

BIPV in dialogue with history

This article introduces chapter 1 "Evolution of BIPV in 40 years: architecture, technology & costs" of the BIPV Status Report 2020 "Building...

Solaris #4

Something is happening within the Swiss architecture schools. More and more faculties are having their students design with energy and environment in mind. They no longer...

BIPV Cost Competitiveness

The competitiveness is defined as “the fact of being able to compete successfully with other companies, countries, organizations, etc...

BIPV quality and normative framework

Integrating PV in building skin today requires an accurate performance assessment in accordance with construction norms and PV standards...

ORIENTATION AND TILT

To optimize the production of solar panels, one of the most investigated aspect is the relation between solar yield with orientation...

SHADING

Shading reduces PV efficiency and could cause safety issues triggered by different levels of current in the solar cells. In case of partial shading...

TIMELINE

The paradigm of sustainability and the increasing demand of nearly zero energy and plus energy buildings are rapidly transforming building skin...

BIPV MARKET DYNAMICS

The BIPV market in Europe is in a transition. The past decades of a slowly emerging BIPV market have been characterized by the original...

THE COSTS OF BIPV

Quite often there is a tendency to avoid the use of photovoltaics because it is believed that it costs significantly more than traditional building...

Solaris #3

On 5 July 2019, the sustainability institute applied to the built environment of SUPSI, with the support from the Federal Office of Energy (SFOE)...

Establishing a cost-effective BIPV sector in Europe

Why hasn’t more building-integrated PV (BIPV) been installed throughout the world? The simplest answer is that a PV module does not architecture...

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Explore our in-depth takes on solar architecture.
A curated selection of articles with brief quiz unpacking key concepts, challenges and opportunities in building with the sun.