At present the building industry operates under a series of environmental sustainability regulations. Both the global agreements associated with the 2015 Paris Summit and the energy efficiency requirements laid down by European directives have a direct effect on the commitment to reducing CO2 air emissions and the subsequent response in terms of domestic use, energy needs and the production of renewable energy. In Europe, more specifically, all buildings must be nearly-zero-energy by 2020.

There is still a long way to go, however. Design is being developed within the confines of these regulations, and industry processes must do the same. The research carried out within the industry, on construction and by building professionals should be focused on finding the best response to this new challenge.

This new course, entitled "Climate Concrete. Concrete Porous Walls Project with CEMEX Research Group in Switzerland", involves analysing the characteristics of concrete and exploring new casing designs and applications that can be tested using prototypes and provide parameterised solutions that increase comfort levels and respond to environmental conditions.

In this course, students are developing a specific formula for concrete and designing a prototype façade system. They are also conducting experiments both in and out of the laboratory to test the material's behaviour in different scenarios. At the end of the course, the six top students will take part in a 6-day workshop led by the CEMEX Research Group in Brügg, Switzerland.