New Unit.City campuses by Kovalska Industrial and Construction Group. Aesthetics, Innovation and Energy Efficiency in Wartime
Kovalska puts new Unit.City campuses into operation. B04 and B06 campuses have parking spaces with a function of bomb shelter, a facial recognition system and energy-efficient windows
The war has become a difficult challenge for Ukrainian business: many entrepreneurs were forced to refocus production or move their teams to a safer place. However, there are also companies that got used to working in new conditions and managed to bring their projects to the final point.
Despite the challenges, Kovalska managed to complete the construction of two Unit.City campuses, B04 and B06. The first leaseholders will soon move into the new offices.
Ekonomichna Pravda has taken an interview with Kovalska team and discovered what difficulties the company faced during the wartime, when the B04 and B06 campuses would be put into operation and what technological solutions would make the leaseholders' stay in the offices comfortable and safe.
The beginning: innovative ideas and quick solutions
The B04 reaches the skies as high as 7 floors, and the B06 – 9 floors. Each of the buildings has an underground parking lot and a total area of an estimated 20,000 square metres.
The B04 and B06 are business class offices. The new project was a complete transformation for the company, because it is the first commercial property that was to be built from scratch.
The launch of the project took place in the autumn of 2020. At that time, Kovalska signed an agreement with Unit.City for the implementation of new campuses. The competition for the selection of an architectural office was held in the winter of the same year.
"Although a general conceptual blueprint of the territory has been developed, an international architectural competition was announced and the APA Wojciechowski studio [Polish private architectural company – ed.] won it," says Olha Pylypenko, the executive director of Kovalska Group.
First of all, a sketch design was developed with the Poles. When the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, the work on the design went online and continued in three offices – in Kyiv, Lviv and Warsaw. The sketch and working documentation were completed in 6.5 months.
The interesting fact is campuses B04 and B06 have become the first projects that Kovalska implemented in 3D. Building information modelling (BIM) technology was used for this purpose. Prior to that, the company did not have such experience.
"A complete digital copy of the building with a detailed location of all engineering communications was developed in the project. This allows us to manage the construction project as effectively as possible within the terms and cost. It minimises construction errors to zero," says Olha Pylypenko.
In the spring of 2020, Kovalska launched the work on construction sites. It was planned to complete the project in 1.5 years, in summer 2022. However, the war started and it was postponed.
"At that time, the campuses were 80-85% ready. At first, it was not clear how to continue the work during the war. However, later the situation in Kyiv Oblast stabilised, so in May, the contractors returned and work resumed. That is, because of the war, we had to postpone the completion of the project by 5-6 months," says Serhii Pylypenko, the CEO of Kovalska Group.
According to him, all construction works are almost complete: the B06 will be put in operation in late October, and the B04 – in November.
Kovalska is currently certifying its campuses according to Leed Gold standards. Such recognition is extremely difficult to obtain, because it is necessary to prove that B04 and B06 are built using appropriate energy-efficient materials and technologies.
"The buildings received A class, according to energy efficiency standards. The use of new technologies and modern materials will allow 25% less energy and water to be used during campus operation. Such indicators are very important for international companies that want to rent offices or buy these objects. After all, big business always takes care of its employees. That is why it is important to obtain Leed Gold certification, which officially confirms the high level of energy efficiency on the international level," says Ihor Subotenko, head of Kovalska Real Estate.
Features of campuses: infrastructure and technologies
Each floor’s area is 1,600 m. At the same time, every floor is designed with a column spacing of 8.1 m. This solution makes the space as open as possible.
"On each floor, leaseholders get a huge flexible open space. It can be transformed in any way: divide it into rooms or leave an entire floor without walls. There are no restrictions," says Serhii Pylypenko.
Particular attention has been paid to the air supply system. According to estimations, up to 300 people will be able to stay on each floor of the campuses simultaneously. At the same time, the system has the ability to supply humidified air automatically.
"The issues of heating and air conditioning in the campuses were solved with the aid of a multi-zone VRV system from the LG company. It helps regulate the microclimate features of each room separately with high accuracy. The air is supplied centrally to the entire floor, but it can be heated with the aid of VRV to the desired level in each zone separately. Thus, it is possible to create a more comfortable environment for people in the middle [of rooms – ed.]," explains Ihor Subotenko.
The energy-efficient windows are installed in the campuses; these are double-glazed units with multi-functional Guardian glass. They consist of tempered glass, heat-strengthened glass and triplex glass. This formula is safe for humans.
"The energy-efficient windows let in 35% of the light. They are perfect for temperature features of any season, because they keep [the rooms] warm in winter, and protect [them] from the sun and overheating in summer," emphasises Subotenko.
The windows in the B06 campus can open and close automatically. This functionality is controlled by a smart system. For example, if the wind increases, the system itself decides to close the windows.
The external illumination in B04 and B06 is an interesting topic as well. The campus lighting is designed in such a way that the system can be controlled from a mobile application. This technology was proposed by the project partners, the illumination company of Expolight.
"The system may receive signals from the Internet. It provided an opportunity to realise the illumination of the buildings of the entire Unit.City at a new level. Now one device can be used to repaint all the buildings, let’s say, in the colours of the national flag of Ukraine," explains Mykola Kabluka, the founder of Expolight.
According to him, it is quite possible to support any creative activities of Unit.City residents. For example, a following project may be arranged: a person scans a luminous QR code, downloads an application and paints elements on a digital building. Simultaneously, these drawings or colours will be displayed on the real Unit.City building.
A unique security system is implemented in the campuses. Contactless access with a facial recognition system was introduced for security reasons. Moreover, while waiting for the elevator, leaseholders may virtually not cross their paths with other visitors.
"The experts have made calculations for several weeks. The elevators are programmed in such a way that even at 9:00, when the campus is overcrowded, no one needs to wait for more than 20-25 seconds," notes Serhii Pylypenko.
The Relevance: during the war and after victory
The new Unit.City campuses will be able to withstand the challenge of the upcoming winter in wartime. According to the project, one of the facilities will be supplied with heat only at the expense of electricity supply. The other campus has an additional connection to a centralised heating network.
"In peacetime, it would be enough to support the operation of offices in a comfortable mode. However, the war sets new challenges. Therefore, in case of a power and heating failure, our team decided to suggest that leaseholders provide their own energy security with diesel generators. Each company will make their own decision, because this is an expensive story. However, if the business needs to provide uninterruptible power, generators may be installed in a separate room in the parking lot," Ihor Subotenko explains.
What should people do during an air raid alert? In such cases, parking lots will serve as bomb shelters. At the same time, people may feel completely safe in such shelters, since these structures are made of concrete.
"When constructing the facilities, Kovalska used many of its own materials – concrete, aerated concrete, dry mixtures, etc. Therefore, we are 100% confident about the quality of the materials and the safety of the campuses," says Subotenko.
As you can see, the B04 and the B06 have many smart solutions that will help to solve any problems. Therefore, companies that plan to rent offices or purchase buildings will be able to provide quality conditions for the efficient and comfortable work of their employees.
Kovalska says that IT companies, technological businesses, and innovative investors will be the new residents of the campuses: "The demand for rent is very high. The first company signed the contract last year and is currently starting interior work in its office. We are withholding this news until the official opening, because this company is in the top 10 by market capitalization, and the opening of its new office is very positive news for the market," says Serhii Pylypenko.
The company believes that the B04 and the B06 campuses are not going to not lose their architectural and technological relevance for a long time, because the fashion for glass, aluminium, stone, and concrete is considered durable. People always appreciate comfort, space, light and interesting solutions in offices as well.
"The world sees the buildings in New York, Chicago. The first skyscrapers were built in the 1950s. You look at them and understand that they are still relevant today. Unit.City campuses may have a long history as well. These buildings are unusual, innovative, and aesthetic. Therefore, they can also retain their relevance even after 50 years [in use]", says Olha Pylypenko.