On 14 December, students from the UIC Barcelona School of Architecture paid a visit to the Rockwool production plant –a leading manufacturer of sustainable insulation solutions– in Carrasposo, Navarre. 

The tour, backed by one of the sponsors of the Chair in Industrial Construction and the Environment (CEIM), has, over the past few years, been given as part of Sustainability 1, a subject in the Bachelor’s Degree in Architecture. This activity provides students a unique opportunity to get a first-hand look at the manufacturing process of one of the key components in the energy sustainability of buildings: thermal insulation. 

The students also took advantage of their stay in Pamplona to visit several energy efficient buildings in the capital of Navarre that have implemented Rockwool insulation systems. As part of this activity, the students went to see the “Building Thermos”, one of the first multi-family buildings in Spain with Passivhaus certification; the “Efidistrict Txantrea” project, the energy rehabilitation of the Txantrea district; and the tower block in Barañain. 

During the tour, the students were accompanied by technical staff from Rockwool, Jordi Guivernau (Technical Service) and Joan Guillén i Miguel Rodríguez (Prescription), as well as the architects and other staff from the construction company responsible for the rehabilitation projects.