The ZEB laboratory is owned and operated by NTNU and SINTEF and is funded by NTNU, SINTEF, the Research Council of Norway, and Enova.
The ZEB laboratory is a full-scale office building where building facades, components, and technical systems can be modified and replaced. The elements can be connected to form part of, or a complete, zero-emission building. The building is a living laboratory, meaning that people who use it as a normal office building or for educational purposes become experimental parameters that provide variation in load with their use of the premises.
Furthermore, research and demonstration of new technologies in a full-scale office building are important to reduce the risk for the first implementations of zero-emission solutions in building design and construction. The building's adaptability makes it possible to investigate the users' impact and how they experience a zero-emission building.
The ZEB laboratory collaborates with and uses other existing laboratory facilities at SINTEF and NTNU, such as the National smart grid laboratory and Living Lab.
The vision is for the ZEB laboratory to be an arena where new and innovative components and solutions are developed, investigated, tested, and demonstrated.
The ZEB laboratory will be
- A laboratory for the development of internationally competitive industry
- A laboratory for knowledge generation at a high international level
- A research arena for the development of zero-emission buildings
- An arena for reducing risk when implementing solutions for zero-emission buildings
- A national resource for all research organizations in the field
- An extension of FME ZEN