EPFL FRIBOURG

Since 2014 the EPFL Fribourg has been housed at the Smart Living Lab, a research and development center for the future of the built environment, in the bluefactory innovation district. Construction of the building for the Smart Living Lab is set to begin in the coming years in Fribourg. The building will be at the cutting edge of efficient resource use over its complete life cycle. Its construction comes 30 years in advance of Switzerland’s 2050 energy targets.

Smart Living Lab

The Smart Living Lab brings together the combined expertise of EPFL, the School of Engineering and Architecture of Fribourg, and the University of Fribourg in research areas such as construction technologies, well-being and behaviors, interactions and design processes, and energy systems. It conducts interdisciplinary research projects through experiments in real conditions involving both researchers and companies. This allows partners from the private, public and academic sectors who are interested in developing innovative projects access to excellent research facilities available at the heart of the Switzerland Innovation Park Network West EPFL.

Structural Xploration Lab – SXL

Prof. Corentin Fivet

Laboratory of Integrated Comfort Engineering – ICE

Prof. Dolaana Khovalyg

Human-Oriented Built Environment Lab – HOBEL

Prof. Dusan Licina

ETHOS Lab

Prof. Andrew Sonta

Building2050 Group

Dr. Sergi Aguacil

Other research groups

HEIA-FR and UNIFR

© 2023 EPFL / Indoor air quality in particular at school under the microscope

Indoor air quality comes under the microscope in Romandie and Ticino

Published:18.10.23 — The air quality of indoor spaces is now recognized as an important aspect of public health. Established in 2022, the Indoor Air Quality Observatory for Western and Italian Switzerland (ORTQAI in French), has the mission of assessing the air quality of building interiors. Bringing together private and public partners, ORTQAI works to identify sources of pollution, evaluate health risks, and make recommendations for healthier indoor environments. The association is led by Joëlle Goyette Pernot, professor at the School of Engineering and Architecture of Fribourg and a member of TRANSFORM, a research institute that works closely with Smart Living Lab. The observatory’s inaugural annual meeting will take place on 23 November 2023, in Fribourg, followed by a conference on the topic air quality in school buildings.

HOBEL Research Paper Acknowledged with Best Paper Award at 43rd AIVC

Published:17.10.23 — The paper entitled "Can Naturally Ventilated Office Buildings Cope with Dusty Outdoor Air?" authored by Evangelos Belias, Flourentzos Flourentzou, and Dusan Licina received the prestigious Best Paper Award at the 43rd AIVC Conference

Smart Living Lab Annual Report 2022

Published:19.07.23 — Discover the Smart Living Lab 2022 annual report! The succession of unprecedented crises that continue to beset our society calls for profound changes in how we produce and use buildings. These have an impact on the environment and the climate because they consume energy and natural resources for the sake of human comfort. They can also affect our health, and raise geopolitical challenges due to issues surrounding access to raw and construction materials. Our lifestyles have dramatically changed since the COVID-19 pandemic, which has in turn led us to use the built environment in new ways. These changes require innovative technological and social solutions that are driven by scientific progress.

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