Dübendorf ZH – An innovative wellness facility has been put into operation in the NEST research building at Empa. In a world’s first, it is powered entirely by solar energy and the power generated by the users’ physical exercise in the fitness room.

The new wellness facility in the NEST research building at the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa) has been put into operation. In an open-concept interior space, three ellipsoids hover beneath the ceiling, housing two saunas and a steam bath. Underneath the wellness modules is a range of fitness equipment for working out.

The wellness facility will be powered largely by photovoltaic installations on the building’s roof and facade. But the users of the fitness facility will also contribute to energy production by using fitness equipment that generates electricity, explains Empa.

In addition to being powered by renewable energy, the wellness facility is exceptionally energy efficient. A conventional facility would devour some 120,000 kWh of electricity per year, but thanks to several innovations, the aim is to reduce that figure to just 20,000 kWh.

One way to achieve this massive reduction is by using a high-temperature CO2 heat pump from the company Scheco, which can generate temperature of up to 130 degrees Celsius. For efficient operation, the generated heat must be used over as great a range of temperatures as possible: 120C for the Finnish sauna, 90C for the steam generator in the steam bath, 70C for the bio sauna, and finally 50C and 30C for the showers and heating respectively. The pump is expected to reduce electricity consumption by around two thirds.

Researchers work and live in the NEST building in Dübendorf, where they can test new technologies under real-world conditions. Empa calls the new wellness facility a “milestone” for the building technology sector, which is why the project has been actively supported by the Swiss-Liechtenstein building technology association, suissetec.