Chilean Facades: Consorcio + Concepción

A stunning new example of VIA (i think?) via Urban Greenery presents the The Consorcio Building in Santiago - with an amazing green wall system on significant portions of the facade - which recalls Ken Yeang's Bioclimatic structures in this tropical climate.




:: images via Urban Greenery

Located in Santiago, Chile - the green walls act as a vital environmental mitigation strategy: "The Consorcio Building in Santiago is one of the most sustainable office buildings, with up to 48% less energy usage thanks to its green wall, which turns red in autumn." An illustration of the shading microclimatic functions.




:: images via Urban Greenery

This interesting photo of the interstitial space between the facade and the outer vegetated screen - providing a cooling gap that allows for sun to be reflected, as well as for warm air to escape through the vertical channels instead of heating up the building.


:: image via Urban Greenery

Platforma Arquitectura offers some more imagery of the project - including the views from inside looking out (and follow the link for many more).






:: image via Platforma Arquitectura

I'm actually not sure what this image is trying to tell us for sure... i get the solar diagram, but the figure pushing on the facade is somewhat of a mystery.


:: image via Platforma Arquitectura

And there must be something good going on in Chile , as this project by Enrique Browne Arquitectos, which has been around for a while, has recently re-emerged on both Arch Daily and Inhabitat: "The office itself is composed of three elements. A vertical green wall constructed from locally-sourced wood shields the structure from the sun to the North, East, and west, and acts as a “double green skin” that insulates the interior. The structure’s south wall features a high-performance facade constructed from locally-sourced corrugated metal that helps to insulate the interior and render it highly energy efficient."


:: image via Inhabitat

We used this image a few years ago as a precendent image for a project in Seattle (when I was at my former employer) and it's good to see it again - as it is a stunning example of using a double facade system for cooling in hot climates. Some more pics and an illustration give a little more info to the story, including a glimpse at the plant list, which includes bougainvillea, jasmine, and plumbago.






:: image via Inhabitat