Lindbäcks Bygg, Stockholm

HögforsGST develops an all-inclusive solution for heating a 6-storey wooden house

Lindbäcks Bygg AB is one of the major construction companies in Sweden. In a joint effort with leading researchers, the company has developed a building system based on wood from the forests of Northern Sweden. Each week, Lindbäcks delivers approx. 2000 square meters of turnkey living space in industrially produced modules, which are then lifted into position on the construction site. A current project is Esplanaden in Spånga – a high-rise residential building in wood where planning and installation of heating and ventilation has been streamlined thanks to a comprehensive solution from HögforsGST.

Hybrid Heating – an obvious choice

Project Esplanaden includes a 6-storey high-rise building with 52 apartments of varying size. Construction started towards the end of 2019 and the building is expected to be ready for residence in early spring 2021. Lindbäcks Bygg was selected as coordinating contractor for the project and in turn hired HögforsGST as equipment supplier for heating and ventilation. Jukka Vaattovaara is project manager within the field Installation at Lindbäcks Bygg:
— During previous teamwork with HögforsGST, I had heard favorable news on the concept Hybrid Heating. We set out to explore the potential benefits that this new technology could bring in this case. We were soon able to define several measurable benefits, so the choice of Hybrid Heat came naturally.

Streamlined installation

Recovery of the heat in the exhaust air from the ventilation system – along with meticulous control via a highly specialized control unit – are the basic technological features behind Hybrid Heating. There are also some important additional advantages. One of them concerns Jukka Vaattovaara’s field of responsibility, installation.
— HögforsGST offered us a complete solution. This has facilitated my own work in the Esplanade project greatly. Their overall responsibility comprised all components, including those in the ventilation system. The dialogue on calculations and practical details during the installation could thus be conducted with the same party, and many of the most frequent problems could be prevented this way. Our basic business concept – simplification by industrially built modules – fits perfectly with the holistic approach preferred by HögforsGST when it comes to heating and ventilation”.

A logical cooperation

The cooperation between Lindbäcks Bygg and HögforsGST is a logical consequence of their respective business models.

Lindbäcks uses construction materials from a local and renewable source, the Swedish woodlands. They have also simplified the construction process itself by development of their industrially manufactured modules. The Hybrid Heat technology from HögforsGST utilizes exhaust air – that is otherwise ventilated out into the open air – as an energy source. Together, the two companies can generate great energy gains. These are now measured in primary energy figures – i.e. the energy consumption is declared all along the way from the source. In this way, the environmental benefits derived from this cooperation become even more obvious.

The collaboration between HögforsGST and Lindbäcks Bygg contains several interesting aspects regarding both construction technology and energy management. We will therefore follow up their joint projects in recurring news articles here on this website.