Baitykool, an innovative solar house prototype project developed by university teams from the UAE, Palestine, and France, is in the race for the Solar Decathlon Middle East 2018 Awards being held in Dubai from November 14 to  29.

Developed in collaboration with students from Amity University (Dubai), Bordeaux University (France), Arts et Métiers School Ensam (France), Architecture and Landscape, School of Bordeaux EnsapBx (France), An Najah National University (Palestine) , the project Baitykool is a multi-family housing unit for extremely hot climates, adaptable in different shapes (co-living, co-working)  in a densely populated urban area and with a bioclimatic architecture.

The project is being backed by Business France, the national agency supporting the international development of the French economy along with the French Embassy in the UAE.

Baitykool competes among  21 university teams selected at this international student concourse and aims this year to play a leading role in this competition against teams from all over the world. This innovative project carries loud and clear France’s commitment to fighting climate change.

The Solar Decathlon Competition, created in the US in 2002, combines architecture, engineering and technological innovation for green building development. The main objective of this concourse is to design the prototype of an ecological dwelling while respecting several criteria and rules defined by the organisation.

The finalists compete on 10 requirements, namely: innovation, engineering and construction, sustainability, architecture, house functioning, energy management, sustainable transportation, communication, comfort conditions, vegetation and hardscaping.

The 2018 edition of the Solar Decathlon has the distinction of being held in Dubai, a region where the climate is extreme with very hot temperatures and high humidity. Baitykool ambitions are fully aligned with the commitments of the One Planet Summit held in New York last week.

This project also echoes  the “Make our planet great again” initiative launched by French President Macron last year, which is an appeal to researchers, teachers, entrepreneurs, associations, NGOs, students and civil society as a whole to come together to help devise climate change solutions.

Philippe Lagière, project manager of Baitykool, commented:  “We are so excited to be shortlisted for the Solar Decathlon Middle East 2018 awards and even more excited to show our project in Dubai during the Solar Decathlon Middle East competition in November!”

Baitykool is a complete energy solution system involving the foundations of renewable energy, water usage and storage considerations.

The prototype adapts itself to the humidity of air, the cold night sky radiations, solar radiations, while capturing the essential energy. Baitykool’s solution takes into consideration the whole environment of the site and the ecology into the heart of the dwelling, resulting in natural lighting, soil to generate food production and water recycling.

The prototype being built in the UAE on the Amity University campus has been developed to solve the problem of the heat of Dubai by offering the best possible comfort to people throughout the day and throughout the seasons.

"We have been working on Baitykool as a collaborative multi-nation team since 2016, and although we faced some challenges, we have successfully created a new way to experience residential life with our prototype. Baitykool, in terms of concept and execution, organizes living spaces efficiently with the use of solar technology," explained Lagière.   

"Our house is, therefore, protected during the day from the sun by a movable energy supplier, which in turn also manages the coolness of the home at night. It is a fresh new approach to smart and responsible living while being sustainable and contributing towards efforts made to maintain climate change," he added.-TradeArabia News Service