The Best Building award goes to CIU
CIU Science and Technology Center project designed by Architect Saffet Kaya Bekiroğlu was deemed worthy of the "Building Award" at the Turkish Freelance Architects Association (TürkSMD) 15th Architecture Awards
CIU Science and Technology Center project designed by Architect Saffet Kaya Bekiroğlu was deemed worthy of the "Building Award" at the 15th Architecture Awards which is considered one of the most prestigious awards in Turkish Architecture given every two years by the Turkish Freelance Architects Association (TürkSMD).
At the ceremony projects, individuals and institutions that set an example in the development of the profession among architectural solutions and represent the country's architectural development in the international community were awarded. Architect Saffet Kaya Bekiroğlu made it to the finals along with 9 other projects in the building branch and with his CIU Science and Technology Building project, he won the best "Building Award".
The ceremony was held for the 15th time this year by Turkish Freelance Architects Association (TürkSMD) in line with its mission to increase the value of the architectural profession, and in addition to architecture offices, different stakeholders such as investors, contractors, engineers-consultants, building material manufacturers, public institutions, academics and local government representatives attended the ceremony. Awards were given in 5 categories, namely the Building Award, the Contribution to Architecture Award, the Press and Publication Award and the Special Jury Award.
Energy conservation in architectural design
The Science and Technology Building was designed by Saffet Kaya Bekiroğlu who worked as the chief architect for many years with the world-famous architect Frank Gehry from Los Angeles and later with Zaha Hadid from London, established his own office in 2015. The Science and Technology Building was designed with the concept of environmentally friendly smart building, and was built based on this this philosophy as an education and research center extending over an area of 16,000 sq.m. Active and passive strategies are integrated into the building design to optimize the energy performance.
The most important active system is the 900 sq.m façade covering the south façade of the building and consisting of second generation transparent Photovoltaic solar panels. With this system, the building uses solar energy for lighting purposes. Among other active systems, there is a high-efficiency air-conditioning system that provides significant energy efficiency and a lighting system made with LED technology
On the other hand, the Solar Chimneys installed on the roof that connect every section of the building are one of the largest passive solar energy applications in the region extending over an area of 650 sq.m. Thanks to this system, the building provides its own heating/cooling and ventilation for eight months without the need for a secondary system. The passive applications available in the building like giant sunshades that prevent direct solar radiation from entering the building and reduce the heat load but do not reduce natural lighting by allowing light to enter, and wall and roof insulation that reduces the air conditioning need of the building by preventing heat transfer come to the forefront. In addition, the air quality is controlled by the automation system in the building; at points where the air conditioning and lighting systems are not needed can be turned off, and many features and functions in the building can be monitored.