More details about our how green the new building is!

Eco-Code

Our mission is to nurture the next generation of environmental leaders, reduce the ecological impact of schools, and build environmentally responsible school communities Most young people care deeply about environmental issues and wish to make a positive change in the environment around them. Our programme will provide an ideal way for fostering environmental awareness in the entire school in a way that links to many curriculum subjects.

The primary aim of the Eco programme is to educate and empower young people to make positive decisions and become change makers for an environmentally sustainable world.

Everyday…… our students are helping in every way they can…..

Welcome to our Green Roof!

Our wish list is bold and ambitious, but our mission to make a difference to our planet and for our community is our highest priority. Help us to Help Nature! •

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Green roofs are a passive cooling technique that stops incoming solar radiation from reaching the building structure below. Many studies have been conducted over the past 10 years to consider the potential building energy benefits of green roofs and have shown that they offer benefits in winter heating reduction as well as summer cooling.

This presentation reviews the current literature and highlights the situations in which the most effective building energy savings can be made. New buildings with high end thermal insulation can benefit the most from a green roof.

Our mission is to go as green as possible! Our new school design will provide students with garden areas, an open space theater, roof level canteen and the opportunity to spend their free time inside a safe environment.

Thank you for helping us to make a difference!

ADVANCED BUILDING THERMAL INSULATION SYSTEM

The benefits of thermal insulation The construction field is so much more conscious today of the multiple benefits thermal insulation has to offer in every construction. Thermal insulation contributes drastically to the lower consumption of heating fuel and thus to the preservation of our environment, while protecting other building elements from the weather.

Cost Effective The heating of a house aims at creating the thermal condition that we can describe as "comfortable living conditions" contemplating for any thermal losses to the environment. When a space (a building shell), is thermally insulated that means that these losses are less and therefore the need for the heating to be on is less and thus the consumption of the fuel is less too. Calculations made have shown that 45-60% of the energy needed to heat a building can be saved by the application of proper thermal insulation.

ADVANCED BUILDING THERMAL INSULATION SYSTEM

Creating the condition for thermal comfort The temperature of the thermal comfort depends on the air temperature in the space and on the temperature of the surrounding areas.

In rooms that are not insulated it is common to feel colder, although the air temperature is high. The reason for this lies on the drafts created when air becomes cold passing through cold surfaces. When insulating a building, its surfaces (walls etc.) have only a small temperature difference, thus giving no rise to draft effects. Consequently, the heating needed to achieve comfortable conditions in an insulated building is only a fraction of that needed in one that is not insulated .

Avoiding condensation on building elements Condensation often appears on the walls In buildings that do not have thermal insulation. This phenomenon becomes apparent when vapor touches cold wall surfaces. A consequence of this is the visible grey spots on the walls which are signs of mold with dust particles due to the surface being damp. With the external thermal insulation of the walls this phenomenon is altogether avoided as the temperature in the building does not fall below the critical condensation point.

Reduced possibility for moisture present inside the building elements In damp spaces one can observe humidity dispersed in the environment through the building elements. When a wall is not insulated and thus cold, vapor may liquidate in its interior causing severe damage to its overall strength. External thermal insulation is the appropriate preventative measure against this phenomenon.

Protection of the elements of the building envelope from the intense thermal stress Thermal insulation protects the external building elements from thermal stress reducing thus the possibility of cracks appearing on their coatings.

Reduced cost for heating or air-conditioning The design of the heating system of a building aims at overcoming the losses to the environment, maintaining a steady temperature which is comfortable for the inhabitants. Thermal insulation enables the use of a smaller, more efficient and cheaper heating system as the thermal losses are sizably less too.

SOUND INSULATION Sound insulation is achieved when using fibrous insulation material

In buildings with sound insulation problems fibrous insulation materials can be installed (glasswool or stonewool) which are not only a thermal insulate, but also improve the sound insulation of the building.

Environmental protection Applying thermal insulation on a building is more cost effective in terms of energy consumption and fuel consumption. Consequently, less fuel needed leads to less pollution for the environment. Statistics show that the emitted CO2 gases for the heating of an insulated building is 45% less than from that of a building that is not insulated.

ATRIUM BIOCLIMATIC SYSTEM

Today, bioclimatic design is widely applied in the construction of buildings in order to save significant amounts of energy and reduce pollutants produced.

The design of an Atrium Bioclimatic System focuses on thermal and visual comfort of the occupants in addition to the ventilation of both the atrium and the adjacent areas.

The atrium can help shape the urban fabric, as it can be a part of urban planning. The open spaces in a building can perform many functions simultaneously and become something more than just passing- through ways. With proper placement it can function as lung effect of sunlight and ventilation of a wider area.

ATRIUM BIOCLIMATIC SYSTEM •

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The atrium serves as collector of solar radiation, resulting in the temperature within it to be higher than that of the external environment. In addition, the enclosed patio helps reduce heat loss, whilst, during the winter, it can infuse preheated air to the surrounding areas.

The natural lighting is one of the biggest advantages that the atrium can offer, as natural light is introduced in the center of the building.

In conclusion by introducing a bioclimatic atrium design in our school, we can improve the ventilation, lighting and environmental footprint for our children.

AUTOMATED BUILDING MANGEMENT SYSTEM (BMS)

What exactly is a Building Management System?

The aim of a BMS is to connect all of the technology in a property which monitors utilities, electronic devices and mechanical equipment. This is done through the implementation and operation of a centralized computer system that provides the user with an interface from which all of the important information regarding the building can be monitored.

The types of equipment monitored by a BMS include air conditioning, ventilation, smoke alarms, security systems, lighting and heating.

Most advanced schools are embracing the benefits of technology by implementing BMS to improve efficiency and assist in the management of the building

AUTOMATED BUILDING MANGEMENT SYSTEM (BMS) Advantages Through Energy Saving One of the biggest advantages of installing BMS is the ability to accurately monitor energy usage in real time.

By installing a centralized system, one can use a digital interface to see how much energy is being consumed on the property and which areas of the building are using the most energy.

This gives the opportunity to identify unnecessary wastage and make changes with in order to cut down on the amount of energy being used and reduce operating costs.

On average, the devices and equipment linked to a BMS account for around 40% of a property’s total energy usage, if lighting is include this figure increase to 70%.

This means that school operators will have access to a full breakdown of their energy usage, making it easier to implement energy-saving schemes.

AUTOMATED BUILDING MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (BMS) Advantages Through Security Imagine one system that can control, supervise and create interaction for all separate sub- systems in our new school.

This means that the alarm system, the fire detection system, the ventilation, the water systems, the lighting, the fire safety systems, the CCTV and the electric distribution system can operate as one under BMS. Thus, the school will be accurately making sure that all children and personnel are safe, comfortable and protected at all time.

AUTOMATION CETRALISED CONTROL SYSTEM EIB/KNX – Instabus

Why should we install a KNX system?

COMFORT Using a KNX system can provide solutions in operating multiple installations or running complex scenarios with the push of one single button. Installations such us lighting, air conditioning, fire detection systems, shading systems etc. can be co-ordinated simply and efficiently. We can create scenarios that will improve students’ daily activities significantly from lighting levels during teaching hours, to library study projection lessons. We can guarantee the best possible shading solutions for the classrooms so that all students can enjoy a perfectly balanced environment.

FLEXIBILITY By introducing a KNX system modifications and additional resources can be implemented with extreme ease and are simple and cost effective.

AUTOMATION CENTRALISED CONTROL SYSTEM SECURITY On of the most important factors to be taken under consideration in a new school project is safety. By using KNX we decrease dramatically the amount of power cables in our building. This means that we lower the fire incident risk more than 50%. KNX also uses programming protocols that boost the students safety during their presence as well as during their absence.

ECONOMY By using KNX for lighting control we can save up to 80% in our monthly power consumption. This is a significant step towards energy saving and environmental friendly operation. KNX can be installed with the use of presence and light level detector.

Also the system uses external light level sensors that will adjust the photometry levels inside the school.

PHOTOVOLTAIC SOLAR PANELS

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Everybody knows that Greece offers an ideal environment for solar heating usage. It’s a fact that the annual sun radiation levels in Greece can rise from 1300 up to 1700 kWh per m2. Pure energy in huge amounts.

By using solar panels we can heat up water throughout the year reaching temperatures above 60 °C with practically no cost.

Solar panels can cover almost 70% of our heating needs. Therefore, a conventional heating method will need to provide for only 30% of our heating needs instead of 100%, consequently, reducing our CO2 emissions and expenses.

PHOTOVOLTAIC SOLAR PANELS

We will see a

return to our investment in approx. 8 years

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We have incorporated into our new building the substructure needed to install the photovoltaic panels at a stage when funding is available.

We asked Eurosol, a reputable Photovoltaic Company, to prepare a Preliminary Assessment Report. This report records the energy efficient benefits due to the installation of that system.

They proposed the following: 380 photovoltaic panels 3 inverters to be installed Power production of 114 kWp. The system will produce 180,000 kWh

The main parts of the Eurosol study are presented below, strengthening our opinion of installing photovoltaic panels:

PHOTOVOLTAIC SOLAR PANELS

The highlights of the Eurosol study is presented below:

SOLAR PANELS There are so many reasons why we should use solar panels: INDEPENDENCE A solar heating systems provides independence from fossil fuel usage. Considering the environmental impact and the increasing fossil fuel pricing, this is a highly strong motive.

ENVIRONMETAL PROTECTION Our sun provides daily more than 5000 times more energy than we actually consume. Using that energy we spare the environment from dangerous emissions that destroy our earths atmosphere.

ENERGY SAVINGS Even a small sized thermal heating installation can provide up to 60% of our daily needs in hot water.

LOW COST If the building uses sufficient thermal wall insulation combined with solar heating , this will create an enormous decrease in costs.

NON POTABLE WATER COLLECTION AND DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM (RAIN WATER) By using the term “rain water collection” we describe the ways and methods of collecting, storing and distributing rain water in order to cover our daily needs for secondary systems such as irrigation and WC water. That way we can spare the use of actual potable water and save a significant amount of money.

POSSIBLE APPLICATIONS Rain water can be used for irrigation, WC water, washing purposes and even for firefighting reasons.

WATER SAVINGS Depending on our daily needs we can save up to 80% in potable water consumption.

RAIN WATER COLLECTION VOLUME By constructing two new rain water tanks of a total of 115m3 and with the usage of specialized pump systems for recirculation and distribution, we can store more than 4.000m3 per year.

NON POTABLE WATER COLLECTION AND DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM (RAIN WATER) The following analysis depicts the rain water data for the Tatoi- Kifissia area annually. We can use the area on our roof to collect the rain water.

Kifissia - Tatoi Γ. (Lon): 23.78 (Lat): 38.107 (Alt): 237m, Attica

Ave. Monthly rain drop (mm) Total days with rain Rain water volume (m3)

JAN

FEB

MAR

APR

MAY

JUN

JUL

AUG

OCT

NOV

DEC

ANNUAL

6,00

SEP 17,6 0

69,20

48,60

51,10

26,20

20,40

9,80

10,00

47,60

60,20

83,90

450,60

11,00

9,60

9,40

8,00

5,60

3,10

1,60

1,50

3,20

6,70

9,40

12,50

81,60

762

466

480

210

114

31

16

9

57

318

565

1.048

4.076

BOREHOLE WATER COLLECTION SYSTEM

We intend to design a borehole system that will include water filtering and water-softening installation, in order to provide safe toilet usage water and ideal irrigation for our gardens.

This will enable us to have the garden our community deserves!

BOREHOLE WATER COLLECTION SYSTEM

Benefits of a Borehole Water Collection • • • • • •

Borehole Water is rich in minerals A borehole is an excellent way to access pure and natural underground water.

The most important benefit is that the underground water is free of all chemicals.

Having ones own borehole drilled will help decrease the demand of municipal water in the surrounding area.

The school will not need to measure the usage of water or worry about watering the garden areas as the water system will be independent of that of the Municipality.

A borehole watering system is much more cost-effective than that of the Municipality.

How green is St Catherine’s ?

Our Student voice leads us……

As part of our Go Green initiative we have established our short and long term goals with the students voice leading and directing us: • Integrated learning about the environment, including in science and geography, focused PSHCE lessons, assemblies and environmental themed weeks • The whole school Eco-Council bringing eco-issues and solutions to the school including an eco-garden and compost bins • New water fountains to encourage the refilling of water bottles instead of buying plastic ones • Recycling bins for general waste and battery recycling • Initiatives to donate instead of disposing of clothes • Replacing old lights with eco-friendly lighting • Encouraging action by joining with Climate Strike Day • Working with the Go Green parent group on whole school initiatives But there’s still much to do…

• We need to ensure that our current site and our new building is eco-friendly in as many ways as possible. This is a challenge and opportunity involving us all and we take our responsibility seriously – we must leave the planet in a better way for the next generation. On our current site we aim to: • Go plastic bottle free • Reduce / eliminate paper worksheets and post classwork and homework online • Replace all lights with eco-friendly lights • Stop plasticising books • Eliminate cling film • Turn off projectors and lights when they aren’t being used • Plant more plants • Encourage carbon offsetting

Our new Upper School will be built along environmental guidelines and we aim to include:

As part of our Go Green initiative we have established our short and long term goals with the students voice leading and directing us: • The Green Roof and lots of trees and plants!

• Automatic light sensors • Rainwater harvesting and borehole system • Efficient temperature controls • Water fountains • Hand dryers in the WCs • Water tap sensors • Solar power • Energy efficient lighting • Thermal insulation • Sound insulation • A bio-climatic system in the atrium

From everyone at St Catherine’s

Thank you

for your support!

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