Lausanne – Be-Smart, an EU research project, aims to make it easier and less expensive to integrate photovoltaic systems into buildings. The project is being coordinated by the Ecole polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL). Several Swiss companies are also involved.

Be-Smart has set its sights on turning buildings into energy producers by stepping up the deployment of building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV). Coordinated by the Ecole polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), the project brings together several research institutes, companies and architecture and construction firms from across Switzerland and the EU.

According to an EPFL statement, the project partners will design multifunctional solar panels that not only produce energy but can also do the job of other building materials, such as insulation, soundproofing or aesthetic qualities. They will also work towards cutting the costs of BIPV by 75 per cent by 2030, making this technology far more accessible.

“The technology is different from that used in solar panels, which are designed for mass production and now manufactured primarily in China,” said Laure-Emmanuelle Perret-Aebi of EPFL. BIPV technology, in contrast “stands to boost European industry”.

Alongside the EPFL, other Swiss partners involved in the project are Association Compaz, CSEM, Immoroc SA and Solaxess SA.