5. 12. 2025
Municipal building Rudimov
In recent years, the construction industry has undergone a fundamental transformation in terms of both construction techniques and approaches to construction as a whole, with a focus on efficiency and sustainability. Passive or zero-energy houses are becoming increasingly common, featuring airtight construction, high-quality insulation, and controlled ventilation systems with heat recovery.
Passive buildings have a heating consumption of less than 15 kWh/m2/year. In so-called "zero" houses, the vast majority of energy consumption is covered by the house's own production from renewable sources, such as a wood-fired boiler or a photovoltaic power plant combined with a heat pump.
The pursuit of maximum energy self-sufficiency is pushing new construction towards active building standards. In Rudimov, they have been working since 2016 on a project for a new multifunctional building to passive standards, and this project was approved for the municipality in the 61st call of the Czech Republic's Operational Program Environment in 2020. The investment costs were estimated at CZK 17.6 million, and a subsidy of 30%, or CZK 5.28 million, was approved. Unfortunately, due to a bark beetle infestation, the additional financing of the project from the sale of municipal timber proved to be insufficient, and the municipality had to decide what to do next.
The existing municipal office and cultural center building from 1890 originally served as a school. It could not be repaired because, although it was built of stone and brick, it had no foundations. At the same time, it was heated in an environmentally unfriendly way using old wood and coal stoves in combination with electric heaters, which were practically unable to heat the office in winter. There were no prospects for a better subsidy.
The mayor was assisted in his efforts to secure funds for the construction by a team of employees from the Zlín Region Energy Agency (EAZK). This organization was established and is 100% owned by the region for the purpose of helping not only the region but also towns and municipalities to reduce their energy consumption.
Through the joint efforts of the entire team, coordinated by EAZK, the project was eventually reworked to meet the active (plus) energy standard and, in 2023, was successful in the 163rd call for proposals under the Operational Program Environment, which is co-financed by the European Union – European Regional Development Fund, and achieve, under ref. no. CZ.05.5.11/0.0/0.0/22_163/0015459, a subsidy of almost 70% in the amount of CZK 17,561,041.20 from the total investment costs of CZK 25,189,098.89.
And so, in Rudimov, a small village near Slavičín, with 252 inhabitants, they set to work at the beginning of 2023. They selected a construction contractor and first moved the office to UNIMOBUŇKA and demolished the original building. In June, they began construction of a new multifunctional building, which was completed by the end of 2023. The heating of the first floor, with a total area of 228 m², together with the attic with an area of 110.38 m², is provided by a heat pump with an output of 12.7 kW and a heating factor of 5.4 with a storage tank with a volume of 314 liters. A total of three heat recovery units ensure the supply of fresh air without heat loss throughout the building. The largest unit is installed in the multifunctional hall and has a capacity of 1440 m3/hour of recovered air per hour, while the other two units, with capacities of 602 m3/hour and 571 m3/hour, serve the offices, food preparation room, and archive. The units achieve an efficiency of up to 84%. An important part of this, and in fact of every new building now, are also perfectly sealed windows and doors, high-quality insulation of the perimeter walls, floors, and roof. The building envelope is insulated with gray EPS polystyrene facade insulation with a thickness of 240–300 mm and a thermal conductivity coefficient of λ = 0.031 W/(m∙K). The floors are insulated with gray EPS 100 floor polystyrene with a thickness of 300 mm and λ = 0.031 W/(m∙K), and a combination of 220 mm thick PIR insulation (λ = 0.022 W/(m∙K)) and 80 mm thick mineral wool with λ = 0.039 W/(m∙K). Wooden windows with a heat transfer coefficient of Uw ≤ 0.60 W/(m²∙K) and entrance doors with a heat transfer coefficient of Uw ≤ 0.66 W/(m²∙K) were manufactured at the nearby SCHS carpentry workshop in Brumov-Bylnice.
The building also includes a photovoltaic power plant with a total output of 19.38 kWp and a battery storage capacity of 21.3 kWh. Thanks to the photovoltaic power plant and battery storage, the building has achieved active standard, meaning it produces more electricity than it consumes, and the municipality uses the surplus for other buildings or to power public lighting. The building has thus become the first energy-active building in the Zlín Region and, since spring this year, it has also been used by citizens, as in addition to the municipal office, the building also includes a community hall, which serves as a library, a gym for mothers with children, young people, and clubs. On weekends, social events, concerts, theater performances, discussions, weddings, and family celebrations are held here. With the implementation of this project, the municipality of Rudimov has confirmed its position as a pioneer of similar sustainable solutions among other municipalities in the Zlín Region.
For example, it has built a biotope for swimming for its citizens and has been operating a self-service buffet there for four years, where you can pay using a QR code.
The municipality also plans to install additional solar panels on its buildings and purchase a personal electric car and a small electric utility vehicle, which will be used for municipal purposes.
