MATRIciel is a sustainable building engineering firm created in 2005 by researchers from the Architecture and Climate research unit of the Catholic University of Louvain to put academic tools at the service of the building sector. The ambition was, and still is, to develop all the dimensions of Sustainable Development in a pragmatic and realistic manner.

MATRIciel thus aims to limit the environmental impact of buildings while maximizing the comfort, health and well-being of the occupants, by decoupling resource use and greenhouse gas emissions from real estate growth..

We refuse to believe that every problem has a “high-tech” solution and are instead adopting an approach based on bioclimaticism and the circular economy to help project developers design places that are frugal in energy, materials and technicality, from the scale of the building to that of the territory.

Our Added Value

MATRIciel provides architectural solutions that are sober and respectful of the environment, and slow-tech and frugal technologies that are :

  • Sustainable : sober in use and designed using a reduced amount of resources, favouring bio-based materials and building systems, and built at a price that is fair and affordable for all.
  • Repairable and robust : easy to maintain and renovate, designed for a long life span, and simple to operate and understand for most people.
  • Reusable and recyclable : allowing for maximum disassembly and recovery of resources at the time of recycling (principle of Buildings as Material Banks).

MATRIciel designs and certifies buildings with high environmental quality and has the expertise to reduce the gap between planned and actual performance :

  • Holistic design of the whole building.
  • Proficiency in computer simulation tools for a better estimation of expected comfort and consumption.
  • Monitoring of environmental ambitions throughout the project.
  • Commissioning of the technical installations so that they can operate at their best efficiency.
  • Choice of low-tech technical solutions and drafting of user guides so that the building and its controls are easy to understand and can be managed and used efficiently

MATRIciel conducts studies to increase the comfort, health and well-being of the occupants :

  • Building physics studies (constructional nodes, air tightness, water vapour migration, …).
  • Studies to determine the best compromise between natural light and thermal comfort.
  • Studies of artificial lighting systems, ventilation systems and individual temperature control devices that are optimized for workplaces.
  • Choice of materials that are not harmful to the occupants.
  • Urban comfort studies (wind and sunlight) to avoid heat islands.

MATRIciel provides advice on how to respect Nature and mitigate environmental risks and pressure on natural resources :

  • Water cycle management studies to mitigate the risks of flooding and pressure on water as a natural resource (drinking and irrigation).
  • Circular design and carbon footprint studies to mitigate land artificialisation and pressure on natural resources used as building materials.
  • Biodiversity studies to preserve and protect Nature so as to mitigate the decline of biodiversity and restore ecosystem services.