Housing Cooperative Aleksanterinranta
Description of the project: Housing cooperative Aleksanterinranta
ItuGraf panels will handle heating and cooling in a block of flats that is currently being built in a prime location in Porvoo (Finland). The heating and cooling panels will be placed in the ceiling and, according to Finnish Home Constructions’ Kalle Rentto, who is overseeing the construction site, they will offer residents more comfort and improve the use of space in the flats.
Aleksanterinranta, a housing company development, will welcome its first residents in winter 2018. Kalle Rentto, who is responsible for construction of the site for Finnish Home Constructions, says that high-quality materials are more important than ever for this building, which is in a prime location on the riverside in Porvoo.
- Of course, quality is important on all of our sites, but here we are using more expensive materials as standard, including stone worktops in the kitchens and two-layer parquet flooring instead of the traditional three-layer flooring. As is normal on our sites, residents can choose from several different material options and decide on the positions of the walls, Rentto says.
The ItuGraf heating and cooling panels purchased from Itula Oy Ltd. provide added value on the site. The 46 flats in Aleksanterinranta, which will be completed first, and 86 flats in Aleksanterinhovi, which is under construction, are being equipped with ItuGraf panels, which guarantee comfortably even heating and cooling with no draughts. The system enables residents to control the heating and cooling in every room.
- We want to produce better quality and offer our customers new technology. The panels will improve the comfort and use of space in the flats, Rentto explains.
Energy savings and more efficient use of space
Energy regulations have made it necessary to reduce the temperatures of pipes. For this reason, radiators need a larger heating surface, which has led to traditional radiators increasing in size. According to Rentto, the decision to purchase ItuGraf panels was based on this.
- Traditional radiators have become so large that they often take up a lot of space in the room. We have chosen panels that can be placed on the ceiling, and the space can now be used more efficiently, Rentto explains.
- The system is cost-effective and high in quality, but the greatest benefit is its energy efficiency, Rentto continues.
Residents’ experiences tipped the balance
A total of approximately 500 panels will be installed in the buildings under construction in Porvoo. Before deciding on a heating solution, Finnish Home Constructions visited a block of flats in Savonlinna where Itula’s heating and cooling panels had been installed.
- We asked the residents what they thought of the panels, and they said they were pleased with the system. We did not hear anything negative about the panels, so these user experiences tipped the balance in favour of the panels. We went through everything with Itula over the course of several discussions, and we established a trusting relationship, Rentto says.
ItuGraf panels are available in all RAL colours with perforated or smooth surfaces according to customer’s wishes.
- For this site, we selected white panels with all of the pipes going behind them. This means that there are no visible pipes, Rentto says.
Itula provided important help and support
As this was Finnish Home Constructions’ first site to use ItuGraf panels, Rentto is particularly thankful for the assistance he received from Itula.
- Designers from both companies went through the technical details together and we received a lot of help from Itula, from the design all the way to construction site implementations. As our designers had no prior experience with these panels, it was important to have Itula’s professionals there to keep an eye on things, Rento says.