As part of the HerzoBase research project (December 2015 to January 2019) funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi), an energy-efficient complex of terraced houses with a positive annual energy balance is being built. The aim is to develop an overall energy concept that optimally links the building envelope and building services equipment and system technology of the eight residential units. It focuses in particular on developing and optimising active and passive building services equipment components.

The energy concept includes high-performance thermal insulation bricks, innovative thermal insulation made of incombustible silicic acid, as well as thermal insulation plaster and solar paint; as active components, a central PV system, heat pumps and central thermal and electrical storage systems are to be integrated and connected to the internal direct current grid. Intelligent operational management strategy will control the activation of the individual components to achieve maximum energy efficiency.

The accompanying intensive monitoring by the research group permits ongoing verification of the savings achieved. The efficiency of the energy saving houses is also being analysed in a three-year long-term monitoring project. The terraced houses are built from environmentally friendly materials which can be recycled or reused after the end of the project.