The construction of Danfoss House has been photographed from start to finish.
Facts about the Town's Harbour
Danfoss House is one of the final pieces in the realisation of American architect Frank Gehry's vision for Sønderborg Harbour. With Bitten & Mads Clausen's Foundation as a major driving force, the harbour has been transformed from an industrial harbour into a dynamic and climate-friendly part of the town based on a master plan presented by Gehry in 2006.
From the groundbreaking ceremony in December 2021 to the completion of the outside areas in spring 2024, photos have been taken daily of Danfoss House, which is situated between the community for senior citizens and Videnshuset in the Town's Harbour, Sønderborg.
The photos have been compiled into a time-lapse video, where images from the different stages of the construction process have been edited together to show the development over time and through the different seasons of the year.
Watch the video here:
Danfoss House is a four-storey building with 14 apartments, and a guest apartment, for expat Danfoss employees. It was built by Bitten & Mads Clausen's Foundation and is leased to Danfoss.
With the construction of Danfoss House, the Foundation's focus has been to explore the possibilities of establishing one of the world's most sustainable residential buildings, using standard building materials and existing technologies for energy efficiency.
Consequently, Danfoss House sets a new standard for sustainable residential buildings and is a test and demonstration centre for the energy-saving solutions of Danfoss.
To prove the high standards, the ambition from the start of construction has been to achieve platinum certification, which is one of the highest sustainability certifications in the globally recognised DGNB standard.
Facts about DGNB
The DGNB (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Nachhaltiges Bauen) is the German Council for Sustainable Construction. In Denmark, the Green Building Council is responsible for certifying sustainable construction and training of consultants and auditors in the standard. DGNB is characterised by both promoting innovation and being future-proof. The building assessments provided by the DGNB are a 360-degree analysis that includes parameters focusing on the planning process around the building, including user involvement and focus on the construction site, among other things. Platinum certification is the highest certification in the DGNB system.
In the DGNB assessment, a building is measured on five factors: environmental quality, economic quality, social quality, technical quality and process quality. When the construction of Danfoss House began, only 12 residential buildings in the world had achieved DGNB platinum certification.
By aiming for high environmental quality, Danfoss House supports the plans of ProjectZero, which aims to reduce the CO2 emissions in the Sønderborg area to zero by 2029. ProjectZero does this by transforming the energy systems while creating new skills and green jobs. The starting point for reaching net zero in 2029 is a reduction of almost 700,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions in 2007, corresponding to approximately 9.2 tonnes of CO2 per capita.
The social quality of Danfoss House has been achieved through an architectural plan that puts people at the centre and promotes social interaction and equality. Danfoss House was designed by architect Per Fischer from Reiulf Ramstad Architects and built by Daugaard Petersen.
