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The CH student residence in Sant Cugat earns an honourable mention for innovation at the 2012 Public Housing Prizes of Catalonia

26 July, 2013
  • The jury stressed that the industrialised, energy-efficient construction adapted to fit the land was a skilful exercise in architecture
  • The Catalan Association of Public Land and Housing Developers awarded the prizes this past Tuesday at a gala held in Sant Just Desvern

The CompactHabit student residence on the campus of the Higher Technical School of Architecture (ETSAV) in Sant Cugat del Vallès has won an honourable mention for innovation in the 2012 Public Housing Prizes of Catalonia. The prizes granted by the Catalan Association of Public Land and Housing Developers were awarded this past Tuesday night at an event held in Sant Just Desvern. The Marketing and Sales Director at CompactHabit, Albert Espinalt, and the architects from the companies DataAE, Albert Domingo, and Harquitectes, Roger Tudó, the designers of the residence, also attended the awards ceremony. This prize serves as recognition for both the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC) and the joint venture CompactHabit/Constructora d’Aro, the developers.

A skilful exercise in architecture
The prize jury stressed that the industrialised, energy-efficient construction adapted to optimally fit the land was a skilful exercise in architecture. They further lauded the fact that the building has enormous interior flexibility and is build around a common area shared by all the residents.

The design
The building on the ETSAV campus is made up of a ground floor and another floor that is made up of 62 industrialised building modules, 57 of which are used for communal areas . Each housing unit measures around 40 square metres and is meant for one or two students. The residence has been in operation since last year and was built following the eMii system based on the manufacture of inhabitable concrete modules which are fully finished and equipped in the factory, and are later transported, stacked and set up at the construction site.