The SDE21 Call for Teams was published on March 29, 2019. Any queries about the Call should be sent to: questions@solardecathlon.eu. They will be answered within one week and published on this page.
Questions will be answered until October 11, 2019 17:00 GMT+2
Find the official announcement here:
https://solardecathlon.eu/call-for-teams_-sde21_-goes-urban/
NOTE: This preliminary version of the Rules is meant to provide an impression, for reference only, indicating the scope and kinds of items that are generally addressed in a SDE Competition. A distinct version of the Rules is currently under development to reflect the specificity of the SDE21 and is expected to be published in September, 2019.
Update:
Additional documentation has been prepared in an update to the files.
This update is being issued in order to:
1. provide more detail on the Urban Situations (Addendum A);
2. describe the application process in a nutshell (Addendum B);
3. assist in the understanding of sections six (6) and seven (7)(simplification of these sections Addendum C).
Point three was specially incorporated according to questions from applicants, to reinforce the fundamental necessities in the application and evaluation process. In this update, you will find a concentrated version of sections six (6) and seven (7) that focus on the specific items required for your application; the fundamental criteria for evaluation are also emphasised. Addendum 3 clearly indicates the deleted texts. There are no changes in other sections. Please note that the original Call and the update are fully compliant with each other. Also, please be reassured that all of the components you have developed based on the original document will be compliant with this updated version of the Call.
Questions
- We don’t understand whether it is necessary to present a complete architectural draft respectively design of a building including e.g. floor plans, sections, renderings, etc. The same is true for some passages in the “Technical Description”. Could you please clarify this?
Answer: Teams are encouraged to describe their conceptual ideas in text and in graphic formats. These are not expected to describe a finished design, but to show intentions that encapsulate the goals and themes the Team is attempting to solve or illuminate with their entry. These intentions are not binding on the eventual design development.
Answered 09.04.19 - What will happen with the competition-buildings after the Living Lab project has ended? Is it planned for the teams to take back their buildings?
Answer: Eight of the eighteen buildings will be preselected to stay on the site as permanent buildings. The other competition buildings will be removed. In your application, please Indicate if you plan to leave the house on site. The ownership of the houses will be transferred to the local, non-profit initiative Utopiastadt. After the living lab phase, the house will stay with the intended use as a hostel.
Answered 02.05.19 - When will you present the three building situations in detail to respectively illustrate the existing examples from Wuppertal’s built environment?
Answer: The three building situations will be presented by end of July 2019. Information will be made available to illustrate the challenges.
Answered 02.05.19 - When will you communicate the cultural, social, economic and mobility-related scenarios and information regarding the district Mirke?
Answer: The scenarios for the district of Mirke will be presented along with the three building scenarios in July 2019.
Answered 02.05.19 - Can all teams leave their prototypes at the SDE Campus in Utopiastadt or only selected teams?
Answer: Teams are asked to indicate if they intend to leave their house on the Solar Campus. The organisers will select up to 8 entries which appear best suited, while indicating the number of remaining available lots.
Answered 31.05.2019 - How is he SDE campus planned regarding the 3 situations:
– Closing Gap: Will there be two walls in between [which] we can construct our prototype?
– Renovation / Extension: Will there be a concrete building with interior and exterior walls, ceilings etc.?
Are there concrete execution plans (3D, BIM) and if so when would we receive them?
– addition of storey: Will there be a bottom plate we can construct upon?
Answer: The three urban situations will be presented in early July with a basic information set. The details, plans, and corresponding conditions on the Solar Campus will be made available in early September.
Answered 31.05.2019 - As we understand the Call for Teams, by the middle of October we should have the technical concept for the building well developed or quite precisely with a calculations already. This means that for our students, either; they have already attended a seminar or similar in the current summer semester, in which the concept is jointly developed and the students are also substantially responsible for the concept development. Or, it means that the applicants (professors / lecturers + external (industrial) partners) are thinking up something that the students “only” have to implement afterwards. The latter would, however, significantly change the character of a student competition. What is the opinion of the organisers? Perhaps we are mis-reading or misinterpreting the Call for Teams.
Answer: In their submissions, applicants should describe / illustrate a design intention which includes the direction of their energy concept. Calculations to verify the concepts are not required in the application phase. The plausibility of the general intention will be a factor for the Jury; however, it is understood that the development and implementation of the design and concepts will be carried out and completed by the Teams after selection as a participating Team. Please note that in Rule 27.1 of the preliminary Rule draft (Schematic Design Documentation), with regards to Deliverable#1: “Note: The proposals sent with this Deliverable can be subject of complete revisions by the Teams in following Deliverables.”
Answered 26.06.2019 - Who is the formal tenderer for the competition? The EEF and/or all/individual sde21 organisers?
Answer: The SDE21 Call for Teams is issued jointly by the EEF and the SDE21 Organisers (Bergische Universität Wuppertal – BUW). Selected Teams will have an MOU with the BUW regarding the funding of their competition entry.Answered 28.06.2019
Does the applicant have to be a university, or can a subsidiary or holding company (minimum participation) of the university participate? Is a simple participation of the university sufficient and who has to participate how? Answer: Applicants are expected to be lead by a university in order to guarantee the accreditation of the Decathletes’ work within their academic programs. Legal entities owned or managed by the university may be the legal party to sign the MOU, but the application is expected to be signed by an authority of the university.
Answered 28.06.2019- How can/may a “cooperation partner” be involved in the project (as co-partner; as contractual partner; as purely executive body; as supporter; as sponsor)?
Answer: Cooperation partners for the purposes of the application are those who are committed to steering and guiding the student Team toward a successful entry. Teams usually acquire additional sponsorships or even partnerships once they are selected; regarding the application, a list of partners is up to the applicants themselves and is not considered exclusive or exhaustive.
Answered 28.06.2019 - Are there guidelines on how sponsors may be involved?
Answer: There are no guidelines as to how sponsors can be involved. This may be through financial support, in-kind services or donations of materials and products.
Answered 28.06.2019 - Are there any guidelines for the ownership of rights (IP) to the work result?
Answer: Intellectual Property issues are the responsibility and property of each Team and associated partners. The houses and their technologies are part of the public domain so this must be taken into consideration before using sensitive or unpublished technologies and methods.
Answered 28.06.2019 - Our team is preparing for application to the Solar Decathlon Europe in 2021. However, we have a few questions about the letter of intent, mainly about the parts ‘Thematic focus for the project’ and ‘Abstract – The abstract provided should be maximum 400 words in length, and should provide a concise explanation of the application’. We were mostly curious as to the level of detail that is expected in these two parts. Is it necessary to already go into the project proposal for example? Or can we stay on a more high level, stating our vision, our focal points and the more organisational issues such as finance, partners, team members, communication etc. So in short, is it necessary to already go into ‘6.1.2.1 project description’ and ‘6.1.2.2 project overview’ of the full application in this abstract?
Answer: The abstract in the letter of intent is meant to describe the overall thematic focus of the Team’s project. It is not necessary to address parts 6.1.2.1 and 6.1.2.2 of the full application in the letter.
Answered 10.07.2019 - The 10 listed SDE competition contests differ between Call for Teams and Rules v1. Which ones are the correct ones?
Answer: The Call for Teams indicates the correct list of contest titles. More information is published by the organisers here: http://www.sde21.eu or here: https://www.solardecathlon.eusde21_-call-for-teams-documents_/. The rules V 1.0r is a reference version to provide Teams with the general scope of a SDE competition, based on previous editions. The Rules reflecting the detailed SDE21 profile are in progress and will be published at the beginning of September 2019.
Answered 19.07.2019 - What is the page limit of the application?
Answer: The Full Application Technical Description is limited to 20 pages (see Section 6.1.2). The description of the documents for Full Applications is listed in Section 6 of the SDE21 Call for Teams.
Answered 31.07.2019 - Regarding registration: Who should be the contact person? Would it be the head of the University or Department or could it be the one who will handle the documentation during the application process?
Answer: The contact person should be the leader of the Team who can be contacted to clarify any information about the application.
Answered 20.08.2019 - Under “Other Institional partners in the Team”: Do we have to list already all possible partners such as departments or external partners and a contact person with the registration or can we add them in our full application?
Answer: If partners are known at the time of registration, please name them. Otherwise, updated list of existing partners can be included in the Full application.
Answered 20.08.2019 - What is the deadline for payment of non-refundable fee of € 750,00? Is it 13th sept 2019 or 25th Oct 2019?
Answer: As is stated in the Call for Teams Section 5.4, the fee must be submitted (deposited in the bank account) by the submission deadline October 25th, 2019 at 17:00. We encourage all applicants to check with their local bank in providing adequate time for the transfer of fees before this date.
Answered 16.09.2019 - Can we design for a self-defined plot within the neighbourhood of Mirke or do we have to stick to the plots exposed with each situations in the document “call for teams_ addendum a” ?
Answer: As it is stated in the Call for Teams, Teams may choose to reason one of three situations based on examples from Wuppertal’s built environment. These specific examples have been provided (sde21_callforteams_addendumA). Should a Team choose to work with an urban situation in Wuppertal, they are requested to select one of these specifically outlined sites.
However, please be reminded that Teams are free to propose one of the three urban situations as applied to their own city of origin, or choose one of the situations specific to Wuppertal (as defined in the sde21_callforteams_addendumA) . In the case that a Team elects to apply a situation to their city of origin, they will need to provide similar information to make the circumstances and the approach visible for the jury. Prospective Teams are invited to understand the three situations with their corresponding parametres and principles as these could be applied and contextualised into the Teams’ choice city.
Answered 16.09.2019 - We have prepared questions for the various departments of the local government, including social & immigration, economy & labor, cityscape, transportation & mobility, green spaces & leisure etc:
- What is the general situation of the population in Wuppertal? Immigration & natural increase/decrease?
- How is immigration perceived by the local population? Is the number/percentage of immigrants growing within the city?
- Where do the immigrants in Wuppertal come from? Other parts of Germany, other EU member states or outside of the EU?
- Why are immigrants attracted by Wuppertal? What are the city’s main strengths?
- Can Wuppertal be considered a commuter town (is a big part of the population living in Wuppertal and working elsewhere in the area, such as Dusseldorf/Koln etc)?
- What is the rate of home ownership in Wuppertal? It was 51.9% in Germany (2015) and 96.4% in Romania (2015)
- Is the residential area in Mirke open for rent or mainly owned by the residents?
- What do you think Wuppertal’s biggest challenges regarding its population are?
- What is the rate of unemployment in the city? What are the main fields in which the people are working in Wuppertal
- What is the age pyramid for Wuppertal? What is the share of active/non-active population?
- What is the need of living spaces in the city? According to a 2018 study by the Hans-Böckler-Stiftung, single occupants reside in almost 50% of all households in the 77 large German cities compared to 33.6% in 1991 and 41 by 2016
- Can you offer any information about living spaces around the city? Like sizes, numbers, facilities, spread etc
- What is the living area per person in the city? Is there a need for certain living spaces throughout the city?
- Is Mirke a migrant neighbourhood at the moment? What are the percentages of immigrants/non-immigrants?
- Do you have any statistics regarding births, weddings and divorces for Wuppertal? We are particularly interested in:
- Median age of the parents at birth, by sex
- Are children born mostly in married couples?
- Median age of men/women for marriage
- Number & percentage of divorces
- Average duration of a marriage
- Average number of children per woman
- Is there any available Urban Planning regulation for Mirke or Wuppertal? Also, is there a Master Plan for the development of the city in the next years that we could study?
- Are you aware of a certain development direction for the city? Like focusing on attracting investors, developing infrastructure, working on growing the number of people that are actually invested in the city (as in living, working here and calling it home) etc.
- Regarding cityscape in Mirke, are there any protected areas or specific regulation that applies in the neighbourhood?
- What is the approach of the local government regarding social housing? Are there specific buildings that are used for this in Mirke?
- Are there any statistics regarding income in Mirke? What is the distribution of income in the neighbourhood?
- We are aware of the large percentage of green spaces in Wuppertal, but we believe that the actual situation is not as green as it seems because the green spaces are not located where the people are actually living
- What is the approach of the city regarding urban green spaces?
- Is there a plan of developing the small green spaces around Mirke and turning them into actual community gardens?
- We noticed that basically every small available space around Mirke has its own small playground. Is that still a development direction for the city?
- Regarding pedestrian areas around the city, is there a plan of having more areas designated for pedestrian use? What about public squares and similar gathering points?
- We believe that urban mobility should be an important part for the development of every city. What is the approach of the city/local government in regard to urban mobility? Is there a strategy regarding this issue?
- Is the local government willing to invest in cycling infrastructure or other mobility projects? What would be the directions of expansion for the cycling network?
- Is there a set objective for the share of alternative transportation in the city?
- What is the status regarding car ownership & usage
Answer: In the context of the Call for Teams, The SDE21 Organisation will answer questions about the Call for Teams, the SDE21 Rules, the three proposed situations and the procedure to select Teams. Other information about the Mirke District, the City of Wuppertal, the state of North Rhine-Westfalia and the Federal Republic of Germany is part of later information exchange. The local Organisers will assist the Teams with further detailed information after the selection phase. Most information to questions like this is available and will be made available to all Teams.
Please consider the requirements in the Call for Teams section 6 (content & form of full applications) and the evaluation criteria in section 7 when incorporating detailed aspects of the current local socio-economic conditions in an application.
Answered 16.09.2019
- Questions grouped into 5 parts:
- Who are the owners of the three existing buildings respectively the property of the building gap (private owners, cooperatives, investors, etc.)? What is the ownership structure (homeowner community, etc.)?
- Can we contact the owners to get more information about the existing buildings?
- Can we inspect the buildings from inside, are data measurements (energy, comfort) or a site measuring possible?
- Are energy data (heat, electricity load profiles) available or will they be available?
- When will the plans (floor plans, sections, etc.) and BIM models be available?
Answer: The SDE21 Organisers will communicate more information about the three existing buildings in Wuppertal after the selection of the participating teams. This information will include the current type of ownership but may change according to your concept. Contacting the owner is not permitted. It will be possible to visit the public areas after the Team selection. It is assumed that work will be pursued on the basis of the typical character of such buildings (including energy data (heat, electricity load profiles) as defined by information portals such as Tabular (http://episcope.eu/building-typology/tabula-webtool/). The same can be assumed if Teams work with a site of their home country / city / town.
The aforementioned information, to be published by the SDE21 Organisers after Team selection, will include a consolidated set of documentation which will be the basis of the further work on the Wuppertal sites. In answer to requests from some prospective Teams, SDE21 Organisers will provide the scanned plans of the buildings/sites as provided by the owner, or as publicly available to all registered Teams via email. Please note, that these plans are not inspected for correctness with the existing situation and are therefore not official SDE21 documents. Working with this material is not assumed as precondition for the application.
Answered 25.09.2019
- How will the selection be done if there are more than 8 Teams intending to leave their prototypes on site after the Competition?
Answer: A jury will select the teams for the competition 2021 and make a suggestion which teams could leave the Demonstration Unit at the Solar Campus. The SDE21 Organizers will decide after further discussion with the suggested teams and after the first deliverable on the final participants of the living lab. Please note the Call for Teams (2.12 – Living Lab).
Answered 01.102019 - Is there a size specification for the demonstration unit?
Answer: The specific size indications are described in the Rules. Please note e.g. Rule 5 (Solar Envelope).
Answered 01.10.2019 - About the financial support of 100.000 € you will provide to teams: Is it a full money supply or could it be benefits in kind?
Answer: Teams will receive a base funding of € 100.000, by contract with the Organisers, in early 2020. Teams will receive an additional donation of € 50.000 in 2020, adding to the base funding if their Demonstration Unit remains on the Solar Campus. Funding will be done via bank transfer; conversion into benefits in kind is not possible.
Answered 01.10.2019 - Is transfer of ownership mandatory for the units to remain as part of the living lab? And would you consider the option of keeping units on the lot for limited time frames of 6-12-18 months?
Answer: Yes, because of the legal framework, the transfer of ownership is mandatory for the Demonstration Units of the Living Lab. Ownership of the Demonstration Unit will be transferred after the Competition to the local, non-profit initiative Utopiastadt. The SDE21 Organizers set the goal to keep up to 8 Demonstration Units on the site as part of the living lab. A time limit is not intended.
The option of keeping the units on the lot for limited time frames of 6-12-18 months must be discussed in every single case between the interested Team, the SDE21 Organisers and the site owner.
Answered 01.10.2019 - In the document ‘Call for Teams’ it is stated that if we decide to choose a city other than Wuppertal, we can choose a case study in our city of origin. However, you explained that we can choose any city in our own country. In parallel, you state that the Call document is leading. So, we were wondering if we could choose any city in our country?
Answer: For the Competition it is possible to choose an urban situation (1_ renovation & extension/ 2_ closing gaps or 3_ renovation & addition of storey) in any city of your choice worldwide. However, you cannot choose any other urban situation in Wuppertal other than those provided in the three given locations.
Answered 01.10.2019 - Can you share details about the legal height limitations (number of storeys) for the 3 sites in Wuppertal? When will the plans (floor plans, sections, etc.) and BIM models be available?
Answer: We will officially publish a complete, consolidated information document after the Team selection phase, which will be the basis of the further work on the Wuppertal sites (including floor plans, sections, construction details, 3D-model etc.). Due to requests from some Teams, we will provide the scanned plans of the buildings/sites as provided by the owner or as publicly available to all registered Teams via email. Note, that these plans are not inspected for correctness with the existing situation and are therefore not official SDE21 documents. Working with this material is not assumed as precondition for the application.
Answered 01.10.2019 - Is it possible to adjust/switch the chosen selection of one of the sites after the application? For example, it could happen that some Teams choose one of the Wuppertal sites and during the ongoing process an even better, more fitting, urban situation could arise.
Answer: No, it is not allowed to switch the chosen site of the urban situation because this site is an integral rationale behind the proposal; this is part of the jury’s decision regarding Team selection. If you are dealing with an urban situation in Wuppertal, please note that you can’t choose any other building other than the three given locations. If you are dealing with an urban situation in your chosen city, please describe the fundamental conditions as precisely as possible. Depending on your specifications it may be possible to select the exact building in a later process, at which point you will add a detailed description of the selected building type. Please note that in these cases, Teams must not shift from the chosen task and must commit to this same task (e.g. closing gaps or renovation & extension).
Answered 01.10.2019 - Regarding the case studies in Wuppertal, specifically nº3 renovation + addition, will we have the same size lot in the Campus? How do we recreate the existing building on the Solar Campus?
Answer: Each Team receives the same size for the lot on the Solar Campus. It is your decision to choose a representative part for your Demonstration Unit to explain the key ideas of your design and concepts. Of course, you can’t build the full building, but you will illustrate the full building concept with your Deliverables and the presentation material on site.
Answered 01.10.2019 - Are you going to release more sociological info about Mirke?
Answer: We will publish more information during the coming months online on sde21.com. Registered Teams will be informed via email.
Answered 01.10.2019 - What will happen if many Teams chose one situation but no Team choses another situation?
Answer: There will be no limitation for the different situations. The jury will select Teams based on the quality of the applications.
Answered 01.10.2019 - Are there any options on how to deliver parts of the house in place?
Answer: That is a key task to manage for you in the Competition. It is possible to deliver both single parts and prefabricated modules. The site will be accessible for trucks. After the selection process you can also contact our logistic partner and make individual arrangement with this or another company. Due to its central location, the site is very well connected with the harbors in Duisburg and Düsseldorf, as well as the airport in Düsseldorf.
Answered 01.10.2019 - Who are the owners of the three existing buildings respective to the property of the building gap (private owners, cooperatives, investors, etc.)? What is the ownership structure (homeowner community, etc.)?
Answer: Information on the current type of ownership will be communicated after the Team selection but may change according to your concept.
Answered 01.10.2019 - Can we contact the owners to get more information about the existing buildings?
Answer: No. Contacting the owner is not permitted. We will publish more details on the buildings after the Team selection.
Answered 01.10.2019 - Can we inspect the buildings from inside, and are data measurements (energy, comfort) or a site measuring possible?
Answer: For public areas, visits are possible after the Team selection. On site measurements are not possible. It is assumed to work on the basis of the typical character of such buildings as defined by information portals such as Tabula (http://episcope.eu/building-typology/tabula-webtool/ ). The same can be assumed if you work with a site of your selected (home or other) city / country / town.We will officially publish a complete, consolidated information document (including construction details and notes on the Tabula database) after the Team selection phase.
Answered 01.10.2019 - Are energy data (heat, electricity load profiles) available or will they be available?
Answer: No, please use the typical data as published in building portals (http://episcope.eu/building-typology/tabula-webtool/ ). We will officially publish a complete, consolidated information document (including construction details and notes on dealing with the Tabula database) after the Team selection phase.
Answered 01.10.2019 - The logo of of our team has a very special colour. We would like to make sure no competing Team uses the exact same colour and so would like to request if our Team can be the only one using it.
Answer: After Teams are selected, each Team will be invited to submit their request for their Team colour. If necessary, the SDE21 Organisers will make appropriate adjustments to Team colour codes by discussing best possible compromises with the respective Teams.
Answered 01.10.2019 - There is a registration of an applicant team for the SDE21 with University A as the prime applicant and University B as a team partner. Is there a problem with eligibility if another team wishes to register with University B as the prime applicant and University A as a team partner?
Answer: There is no problem with eligibility in such a case. Each post-secondary educational institution is eligible to submit their own application as a prime applicant (A) with another university as a team partner (B) and vice versa, with inverse roles.
Answered 04.10.2019 - Regarding the Call for Teams, Application in general: In Q&A Answer 10 you write “Teams usually acquire additional sponsorships or even partnerships once they are selected; regarding the application, a list of partners is up to the applicants themselves and is not considered exclusive or exhaustive”. // In Answer 17 is written “Otherwise, updated list of existing partners can be included in the Full application.” Which seems a little confusing. As we guess that answer 10 is more likely: Could you please confirm, that it will be permitted to acquire more partners for any kind of support after the application has been submitted?
Answer: Yes, it is permitted to acquire more partners after the Full Application has been submitted.
Answered 09.10.2019 - In the Call for Teams, 6.1.2.5 and 6.1.2.6: Could you please explain the difference between “letter of commitment” and “letter of support”?
Answer: Partners who are part of the Team leadership (cost share providers) should submit a of commitment. Other partners can submit a letter of support in the appendix.
Answered 09.10.2019 - In the Call for Teams 6.1.2.5: Could you please define “sub-recipient” and “third party cost share providers”?
Answer: a sub-recipient is a party who will perform work for the project but are not part of the Team leadership. A third-party cost share provider can be considered as a mission-critical sponsor or donor to the project.
Answered 09.10.2019 - In the Call for Teams 6.1.2.5: Which Team members have to be named for the Application? (We guess that any Team will/can grow and/or change, especially after a possible successful application..?)
Answer: All currently known members of the Team should be named. As a minimum, the Faculty Advisor(s), the Project Manager and Student Team Leader(s) should be named.
Answered 09.10.2019 - In the call for teams you ask for a summary slide (chapter 6.1.5 Summary Slide). You wrote: “Applicants are required to provide a single 16:9 ratio slide summarising the proposed project. The slide must be submitted in PDF format. This slide is used during the evaluation process. Save the Summary Slide in a single file using the following filename “Number_Organization_5_Slide”. The Summary Slide template requires the following information:
– A project Summary
– A description of the project impact
– Proposed project goals
– Any key graphics (illustrations, charts and / or tables)
– The project’s key idea
– Project title, Prime Recipient, Principal Investigator, and Key Participant information.”
Do you really mean only one slide, meaning one page or one presentation? We assume that the above mentioned content does not fit on one page!
Answer: Yes, the Full Application requirements refers to one single Summary Slide. This is used as a reference slide, to remind jury members of the fundamental facts regarding the application during the review process. The objective of one slide is to be as succinct, as streamlined and as effective as possible with clear words, pictures and hierarchies of information.
Answered 09.10.2019 - Regarding Addendum A: Urban Situations Defined, page 7,9,11: The hatching / legend for “construction area” and “site concept area” are not consistent for the 3 situations. (For instance: The same hatch is used for “construction area” and “site concept area” in the different site descriptions, maybe it’s mixed up between site 1 and 3). Could you please clarify?
Answer: On pages 7 and 11 of the document “Urban Situations Defined” (Addendum A) the hatching of the legend is wrong. The construction area is marked as full-surface green and the site concept area is marked as hatched area (compare site plan).
Answered 09.10.2019 - We would like to inquire about the architectural constraints of the Mirke district. As the German Building Code doesn’t mention exactly, we would like to know if it is possible to build a terrace instead of a sloped roof in the residential areas such as proposal no. 1 from the Call for teams.
Answer: Depending on your building concept, it is possible to build a terrace instead of a sloped roof. The binding building code for the Competition will be published in early 2020 and will contain particular safety-relevant specifications. For the purposes of the Full Application, compliance with a local building code is not a factor. We encourage you to study the evaluation criteria of section 7 of the SDE21 Call for Teams. These are the criteria the jury will use in selecting the 18 teams for the Competition.
Answered 13.10.2019 - The Project Overview has to be about two pages including visuals and / or graphics, reducing greatly space for further explanation. My question is the following: Is it possible to have an appendix for extra visual and graphics in the Technical volume?
Answer: The page length is fixed and the Call for Teams states in section 5.1.4.5: “If Applicants exceed the maximum page lengths indicated below, the EEF and the SDE21 Organisers will review only the authorised number of pages and disregard any additional pages.”
Answered 13.10.2019 - Regarding Technical Volume structure, 6.1.2.2. Project Overview, the last paragraph, regarding the key elements of the proposal. Do these key elements refer to the design principles of the project or do they refer to types of spaces and specific construction solutions?
Answer: They refer to the design principles of the full application.
Answered 13.10.2019 - To what extent can we intervene on the arrangement of the ground floor? We will not intervene on the functionality, but on the form. Ex. the house of stairs in the middle, or windows to the terrace.
Answer: The design part of the Competition calls for a solution for the entire building. Depending on the design intention, interventions in the existing building may or may not be required. It is up to the Team to show that this is necessary, plausible and feasible.
Answered 13.10.2019 - What do you understand by critical success factors, mentioned in Technical Volume -> Project Goal? Is it about the general skills/instruments we have/will need to have (communication, teamwork, planning etc) or are you referring to something else that is more specific?
Answer: The factors for success are the combined technical, administrative, financial and organisational and communicative requirements for the Team to meet its goal(s).
Answered 13.10.2019 - Regarding section 6.1.6 Letters of Commitment: it says that an applicant will need a Letter of Commitment from the leadership of all partner institutions. Do you need a Letter of Commitment from the Rector of the University or is it sufficient to have the letter from the Head of the affiliate Department?
Answer: The Letter of Commitment should be from the he most relevant authority, the highest authority being best. This is the guarantee that the Team will receive the institutional support for the duration of the Competition.
Answered 17.10.2019 - For the case study regarding the renovation and extension of an existing building, we realised that from the definition presented in the addendum it is not clear whether we must add a new and complete housing unit, or if we can develop a concept for the addition of rooms or common spaces not necessarily combined as a traditional housing unit. The question arises by the definition which says that “the renovation may create more living space and optimise space efficiency”.
Answer: Teams are free to interpret the addition and its use according to their concept proposal. The primary use is housing; however, this does not preclude other uses in combination with housing units.
Answered 17.10.2019 - The description of Situation I, there is a reference to a “head building”. Do you refer to the building indicated as III or the number IV (please, refer to figure at page 7 in Addendum A)?
Answer: The head building refers to Building IV in the diagram on Page 7.
Answered 17.10.2019