The aim of this paper is to analyze the basic criteria, trends, applications, and developments related to climate adaptation in building maintenance and operation management (MOM) practices in Norway. Investigations conducted as part of the study include an analysis of current literature addressing climate adaptation in relation to MOM practices, supplemented by a review of existing research projects and initiatives in this field. Three case studies involving different Norwegian building owner organizations were examined in order to investigate the current status of the application and extent of climate adaptation practices in relation to MOM. The study has revealed a significant gap between theory and practice when it comes to integrating MOM in relation to climate adaptation. The concept of climate adaptation is only addressed as a high-level strategic issue. The case studies thus emphasize the need for a structured process that can enable the incorporation of climate adaptation in current MOM practices. This proposes a generic and structured climate-adaptive MOM framework that will enable the incorporation of climate adaptation in into corporate MOM practices at different scales and organizational levels. Implementation of this flexible and transferable framework is expected to provide a basis for accruing further knowledge on climate adaptation. Further work with the framework should include the introduction of more tangible and tailored tools and processes, including checklists or scoring systems accompanied by relevant climate adaptation factors and plans.
Buildings that are designed to meet high-energy performance requirements, e.g., passive houses, require well-insulated building envelopes, with increased insulation thicknesses for roof, wall and floor structures. We investigate whether there are differences in the efficiency of thermal insulation materials at different moisture levels in the insulation and if there is a larger or smaller risk of natural convection in wood-fibre based insulation than in mineral wool. The work has mainly been performed by use of laboratory measurements included permeability properties and full-scale measurements of thermal transmittance of mineral wool and wood-fibre insulated constructions. In addition, calculations have been used to calculate resulting effects on the thermal performance of constructions. Results showed that the thermal conductivity was unaffected by moisture in the hygroscopic range. The air permeability was found to be approximately 50% higher for the wood-fibre insulation compared to mineral wool insulation. Measurements showed that the largest U-values and Nusselt numbers were found for the wall configuration. Calculation of the U-value of walls showed that in order to achieve the same U-value for the wood-fibre insulated wall as the mineral wool, it is necessary to add 20 mm insulation to the 250 mm wall and approximately 30 mm for the 400 mm wall.
Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) elements have had a growing popularity in recent years due to i.e. low carbon footprint, low weight and efficient construction time. However, the elements are sensitive to moisture and prone to organic growth if not treated properly or if used incorrectly. Roof slabs are particularly exposed, as they have a large area of exposure and the horizontal orientation doesn’t allow rainwater run-off. The efforts made to protect CLT-roofing elements by Norwegian contractors vary widely, as there are few guidelines and little long-term experience. A field study of CLT-roofs on existing buildings was conducted to investigate the conditions after some years in service. The study includes inspection and moisture measurements of CLT elements from the exterior side in 10 building projects 1-9 years old from two regions of Norway. The contractor of each project was interviewed in order to assess the extent of climate exposure and protection measures during construction. The results indicate a correlation between water content, building age and exposure level during construction. There is a clear indication that the drying time for built-in moisture in CLT roof constructions are slow. Keeping built-in moisture to a minimum is therefore paramount.
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