FAQ - Frequently asked questions

OPENLY answers your most frequently asked questions about our solutions and systems for net zero residential and office buildings.

  • Our competitors for construction systems include GROPYUS or NOKERA in Germany, 011H in Spain and CREE from Austria.

    The difference to these systems is the CO2 focus by means of certificates as well as the decentralized architecture and production. The main problem is not the production but the planning and approval of the projects.

    Our motto: Think globally - plan and build regionally.

  • OPENLY an open building system (openly). We share our knowledge.

    Openly.Lab participants receive access to Openly.Data with a comprehensive script, planning guide, detailed drawings, suppliers and purchase prices.

  • The approximately 10-year-old 2226 building in Lustenau was far ahead of its time and a milestone that also served as inspiration for OPENLY.
    OPENLY therefore commissioned the proof (Valley Widnau) also commissioned BEA for the submission planning.

    OPENLY goes a decisive step further by consistently thinking of a house as PlusEnergy (and not as a house without heating/technology) and adding the CO₂ focus (gray energy) to the use of resources (components). We see buildings as C sinks and try to avoid concrete & bricks as much as possible.

    In addition, we have strived to industrialize all components so that they can be used globally by any building owner or architectural firm. (e.g. OPENLY Airbox).

    The Rhine Valley/Vorarlberg is the Silicon Valley of sustainable construction - we see this as a joint effort for #co2netzero. The Rhomberg Group with CREE, LehmTonErde or SENN, from which HORTUS originates, as well as the world's first comaking space for joineries is located there.

  • As project coaches and client representatives, we ensure that the decisive criteria are applied to reach the finish line of your project.

    We know from our own experience that 80% of projects die or are massively reduced in scope. We want to prevent this by keeping project involvement low.

    We also call this the "buyer principle". The more precisely a client knows what he wants, the higher the chances of success.

  • OPENLY is not a label, a standard, an architectural office or an ideology.

    What drives us is a purely fact-based decision-making basis for climate-neutral construction.

    Founder Andy Keel:
    We have no material bias, we are not industry-driven or industry-financed (e.g. concrete lobby), we have no absurd venture capital investors and we are not missionaries (cf. education). We are a team of analysts & practitioners who want to make a global contribution to #co2netzero. Gladly together and gladly openly. #leadthechange

  • See our offer.

    We prepare a detailed quotation for each project phase and charge a reasonable daily rate.

    Our fees are cost-neutral as the services of the specialist planners and architecture are reduced.

    We see the training and consulting part as non-profit resp. Certified B Corp.

  • If we are appointed by clients as client representatives and project coaches, we request that your office completes the Openly.Lab.

    The cost is CHF 650/person per course day. With this accreditation you get free access to OPENLY Data (all detailed plans & sections, purchase prices & suppliers) for 1 year. You will also benefit from the exchange with architects in the network.

  • We do not presume to know more than specialists, especially building physicists.

    The training day is intended to provide a deeper understanding of the OPENLY building system and to visit OPENLY Valley Widnau. In particular, building physics and life cycle assessment will be covered. We have noticed that there is a lot of ignorance about CO₂. For this reason, we motivate building owners and architects to come to the lab.

  • All calculations are carried out in accordance with ISO 14067 & EN 15804+A2. They are based on data from ÖKOBAUDAT (or Switzerland KBOB). We calculate both direct emissions and indirect CO₂ emissions (on Scope 3, i.e. including transportation and subcontractors).

    The Module D recycling potential is shown under the circular construction approach, but is not included in the overall balance. If a component is CO₂ negative and has been used for > 60 years, we include CO₂ capturing (e.g. solid structural timber, hemp & biochar). If the wood is only used for a short period of time (e.g. kitchens or windows) and is then used to generate energy, Module D provides the option of showing a credit for substituted fossil fuels. As module D is not part of the actual building life cycle by definition, it is often referred to as information module D and not included in the overall balance. The KBOB also follows this principle (= does not even recognize module D).

  • Their decision - Openly is not a label.

    The OPENLY principles include:

    • Aiming for energy-plus buildings

    • Timber construction or timber-concrete-steel hybrid construction

    • Commitment by building owners to massively reduce CO2 emissions (min. 10kg / m2, target 6 kg/m2)

    Optional criteria:

    • Controlled domestic ventilation with OPENLY airboxes

    • OPENLY OS - Operating System

    • Hempcrete or straw insulation

    • Hemp brick room partitions

    • Clay-wood ceilings (hollow box or other systems)

    • Clay walls

    • Biochar concrete

    • C02 neutralized reinforcing steel

    • Re-use steel beams

    • Showers with heat recovery / fresh water station

    • Prefabricated wet rooms

    • Lime plaster or diffusion-open walls

    • Digital power installation

    • Surface-mounted electrical installations / Glued-on wireless push-buttons (Enocean)

  • Founder Andy Keel:
    The dangers of climate change are driving us to achieve our #CO₂netzero target as quickly as possible. The construction industry is responsible for 25% of CO2 emissions (air traffic for 3%). Building materials need to be replaced as quickly as possible.

    We must bring buildable, scalable and affordable solutions to the construction industry as quickly as possible. The drivers for this are developers and portfolio managers (refurbishment) and not politicians or architects.

    With OPENLY Valley Widnau, we have provided the proof and invested 20 million ourselves.

    Now we are making this know-how openly available.

  • The Rhine Valley / Vorarlberg has become the Silicon Valley of sustainable construction. In addition to OPENLY & BEA, the Rhomberg Group is also based there with CREE, LehmTonErde and SENN (from which HORTUS originates), as well as the world's first comaking space for joineries.

    Our own architectural office for yield-optimized apartment buildings is also based in the Rhine Valley: Valley-Architects.com

  • It's quite simple. There is no "Birkenstock faction" in our team. Through a purely analytical process in component evaluation, we repeatedly came across "biogenic" building materials, as only these have a small or even negative footprint. The discovery was simply hemp as insulation. As this is negative with approx. 100kg/m3 CO2 and grows in the field in front of the house.

    But OPENLY is also software and technology(building control). At some point we came across the word bionic, which perfectly describes which building materials we use openly. This term is also open enough to include, for example, biopolymers (bioplastics) and also our OPENLY operating system (building control).

  • We currently calculate the CO₂ balance manually on an hourly basis. We are preparing an automated calculator based on Ökobaudat/Baubook. The aim is to permanently integrate this into OPENLY in 2025 and make it available to other tools and websites via API.

    The basis is the Ökobaudat or KBOB in Switzerland.

  • Bound CO₂ in biochar is the first available and tradable CO₂ certificate today.

    A certificate for biogenic building materials (wood, hemp, straw, ...) will be available from January 2025. Further information

  • Houses planned and built with the OPENLY construction system strive for plus energy. This means that the energy usually generated from PV (annual balance) is greater than the energy consumed for heating and hot water.

    The key to achieving these values is a roof fully covered with PV, compact architecture (with the smallest possible envelope), 25-30% window area and ceilings that can store energy (heat and cold). OPENLY buildings (see Valley Widnau project) are barely recognizable as PlusEnergy houses from the outside and inside - so they are not "solar façade bunkers".

  • Our founder Andy Keel has set out to write a project outline for a CO₂-neutral plus-energy house. From his self-built Building trade- and IT companies he has extensive expertise and excellent industry contacts. In 3 years, the OPENLY team was built up, the component innovations developed and the first stage of the Valley Widnau project with 19 apartments implemented.

    The idea was always to pass on the knowledge gained - hence the name openly

    Andy Keel also calls this #Leadthechange #GenX.

  • The proof with the Valley Widnau project was pre-financed with the help of a private family & bank mortgage and then divided into 19 condominium units and sold.

    The remaining equity, in particular for component development, CO2 certificates and patents, comes from operating income, savings and borrowed capital from the founder Andy Keel, Titus Spirig and Openly Friends.

    Further information on the Openly business model

  • We have planned to transfer the training and consulting to an organization, a Certified B Corp or a foundation. Further information

    In the Asset & Trade area, we are open to industrial companies and private equity.

    Investment opportunities

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