Sensors installed in the InnoRenew CoE building

The new InnoRenew COE complex is a hybrid combination of wood, concrete and steel. The institution, dedicated to research on sustainable building, has installed sensors to monitor the conditions to which the new wooden panels are exposed.

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Photo: InnoRenew CoE
Photo: InnoRenew CoE

InnoRenew CoE is an independent research institute. Their research targets renewable materials and sustainable buildings, specifically innovative approaches to wood and its use, with the goal of transferring scientific knowledge into industrial practice.

InnoRenew CoE is building a new complex in Livade, Izola, Slovenia. When complete, two interconnected buildings will cover 8,200 square meters of offices and research laboratories. The complex will consist of a hybrid combination of timber, concrete and steel. Solid timber walls will be made of cross-laminated timber panels (CLT). The building itself will be an important demonstration project that will allow continuous monitoring and evaluation. For the monitoring, sensors are required.

InnoRenew CoE collaborated with the Czech company MoistureGuard to finalize sensor installation at the institute’s new complex.

Thirty-six sensors (HT02) to measure humidity and temperature and four sensors (MHT04) to measure humidity weight in CLT panels will monitor the building envelope, including insulation layers. Sensors are located on all sides and stories of the building.

“The CLT construction exposed to the conditions of the maritime climate offers a unique opportunity to deploy the MoistureGuard system and monitor the parameters of the structure since its inception,” said MoistureGuard representatives in a written statement.

“Sensors will be connected directly to the building’s data infrastructure and are designed to monitor the conditions to which the CLT panels are exposed to and how they are reflected in their structure,” they added.