Building as a C-sink
Our bionic construction system for your net zero buildings

Because it matters

Developed and already implemented in Switzerland. OPENLY is a tried and tested solution for building owners, companies and architects to achieve ESG goals. Applicable for new build and refurbishment projects. Worldwide.

  • Buildings are responsible for 40% of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. In Switzerland, 25% of annual emissions come from the construction industry.

    OPENLY's primary goal is to prevent CO₂ emissions by using building materials that cause low/no emissions (cement- and fossil-free) and only secondarily store CO₂. We estimate the savings to be around 70% compared to conventional buildings / renovations.

    OPENLY sees buildings as CO₂ storage. (Buildings as C-sink). In technical terms, this is called CC(U)S - Carbon capturing, (utilization) & storage. The OPENLY building system delivers CO2 certificates for your insetting or sale on the market.

    e.g. 1 m3 of hempcrete stores approx. 100kg / CO2 net. We call this the "Climeworks principle" or "carboncasting".

  • Net zero means that all greenhouse gas emissions caused by humans must be removed from the atmosphere again by reduction measures and thus the Earth's climate balance is net zero, i.e. after deductions by natural and artificial C sinks. This would make mankind climate neutral and the global temperature would stabilize.

    However, the later this target is reached, the higher the negative emissions required. You can find out more about this in the article on negative emissions or in the article on your own CO₂ budget.

    Source: myclimate (link)

    Net-zero emission is a "zero emission" meant only mathematically, in which emissions are created on one side and at the same time emissions are prevented to the same extent elsewhere or permanently stored in additionally created sinks (negative emissions).

    In the context of the current disruption of the carbon cycle, the IPCC defines net-zero emissions as the offsetting of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions by the anthropogenic removal of greenhouse gases with an equal climate impact over a defined period of time. The offset depends - if multiple greenhouse gases are considered - on the metric chosen to assess the climate impact of the gases (e.g., global warming potential). Net-zero CO₂ emissions are net-zero emissions of the greenhouse gas CO₂, a synonymous term is carbon neutrality.

    Source: Wikipedia (link)

  • The name OPENLY is derived from the old English word "openlice". It stands for: Without concealment, without deception or evasion, especially when these might be expected; openly or honestly.

    This is OPENLY's basic attitude, which is of central importance in times of greenwashing and the inflationary use of "green" and "sustainable". We are driven by the transparency, simplicity and traceability of our system and our CO2 calculations (based on KBOB & Ökobaudat).

    OPENLY sees buildings as carbon sinks and provides CO2 certificates for the corresponding building materials that store CO2.

    BIONIC

    Building bionics or architectural bionics, also known as "natural building", is a branch of bionics. Bionics is an interdisciplinary science in which, for example, biologists, physicists and other natural scientists work together with engineers, architects and designers. Building bionics describes the transfer of phenomena from nature to technical functions that can be relevant to the architecture and functions of a building.

    Bionics means learning from nature. In construction bionics, for example, spider webs serve as models for rope constructions, leaf overlaps as models for ideal surface coverage, or the honeycomb principle for exemplary surface utilization.

    Bionic architecture is a contemporary movement that explores the physiological, behavioral, and structural adaptations of biological organisms as a source of inspiration for the design and construction of expressive buildings. These structures are designed to be self-sustaining and to change structurally in response to fluctuating internal and external forces such as weather and temperature changes.

    Although this style of architecture has been around since the early 18th century, the movement only began to mature in the early 21st century as society became increasingly concerned about climate change and global warming. These influences have led to bionic architecture being used to distract society from its individualistic environment by creating landscapes that allow for a harmonious relationship between nature and society. This is achieved through a deep understanding of the complex interactions between form, material and structure to ensure that the building's design supports a more sustainable environment. As a result, architects are relying on the use of high-tech, man-made materials and techniques to save energy and materials, reduce the consumption of buildings and increase the practicality and reliability of their building structures.

    Source 1: Wikipiedia (Link)

    Source 2: (Bionic innovations)

What drives us.

Our mission movie from 2021

(14'000 views & counting...)

Guiding principle:
Avoid CO2 emissions.

CO2 neutral construction

Thanks to the use of fossil-free and local building materials, some of which store more CO2 than is emitted during production, OPENLY buildings are already low in CO2 during construction. The saving is around 70%. With biogenic CO2 capturing (CCS) in certain building materials, OPENLY buildings become carbon sinks.

Zero emission operation

Thanks to excellent insulation values, the high storage mass, reduced window areas with OPENLY AIRBOX©, the use of photovoltaics and our intelligent energy management system(OPENLYSYSTEM©), our houses achieve PlusEnergy standard and become small zero-emission power plants.

Durability
with value retention

Through the uncompromising use of high-quality materials and a focus on re-use, recycling and a standardized structural design, our buildings are designed for long and adaptive use. The OPENLY building system probably has the best long-term return on investment of all building types. (See our offer)

The building that started it all

We are investing CHF 20 million ourselves in the Valley Widnau pilot project with 30 apartments.

 

OPENLY

VALLEY WIDNAU

OPENLY VALLEY WIDNAU

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