Library
Open specifications, production logic and measured performance. Everything here is written to be copied into a real drawing set.
Library
Open technical standards, criteria and methods, with sourced numbers.
Standards · File 01 · 14 min
Five principles — embodied carbon, operational energy, waste, circularity and the life-cycle view — set out with sourced numbers, eight technical drawings and four data tables.
37% of global CO₂ (2024) · ≈50% of material extraction · 11–13% of global GDP
Kaan Vaizoglu
Standards · File 02 · 6 min
A plain reading of the incoming limits, and where bio-based assemblies already comply.
BFN Editorial Desk
Library
Materials, panels, production and measured performance from our own development work.
Key figures
0.14 W/m²K
BioSIP™ envelope
Structural insulated panel, agricultural fibre + mycelium binder
41 MPa
ReedStrand™ cassette
Bending strength; 7.2 m clear span floor and roof elements
62%
Bio-Cell™ facade
Light transmission at cavity-wall thermal performance
90 min
AIOS production cell
Press-to-tolerance cycle per structural panel
−65–70%
Energy demand
Against a code-minimum reinforced-concrete reference dwelling
−43%
Whole-life carbon
kgCO₂e/m² GIA, EN 15978, eleven completed buildings
| System | Metric | Value | Standard |
|---|---|---|---|
| BioSIP™ panel | Thermal transmittance | 0.14 W/m²K | ISO 6946 |
| BioSIP™ panel | Airtightness | 0.3 h⁻¹ @ 50 Pa | EN 13829 |
| ReedStrand™ OSB | Bending strength | 41 MPa | EN 310 |
| ReedStrand™ OSB | Clear span (cassette) | 7.2 m | EN 1995-1-1 |
| Bio-Cell™ insulation | Thermal conductivity | 0.036 W/mK | EN 12667 |
| Bio-Cell™ facade | Light transmission | 62% | EN 410 |
| AIOS™ cell | Production tolerance | ±1 mm | Internal QA (vision) |
| AIOS™ cell | Panel cycle time | 90 min | Line measurement |
| Whole building | Whole-life carbon | −43% kgCO₂e/m² GIA | EN 15978 |
| Whole building | Heating demand | −70% kWh/m²·a | EN ISO 52016 |
Technical data — the Neufert standard
| Property | Value | Standard |
|---|---|---|
| U-value (envelope) | < 0.15 W/m²K (0.14 measured) | ISO 6946 |
| R-value (envelope) | R-40 · 7.14 m²K/W | ISO 6946 |
| Fire class | Class A · A2-s1,d0 | EN 13501-1 |
| Seismic resilience | 8.0+ magnitude · lightweight diaphragm | EN 1998-1 / TBDY 2018 |
| Material composition | ReedStrand™ facings (2 × 15 mm) + Bio-Cell™ core (240 mm) | EN 300 / EN 12667 |
| Airtightness | 0.3 h⁻¹ @ 50 Pa | EN 13829 |
| Production tolerance | ±1 mm (AIOS™ robotic cell) | Internal QA (vision) |
Technology & R&D · 9 min
Whole-life assessments of the first BioSIP envelope programme show embodied carbon falling 43% against a conventional reinforced-concrete baseline — without extending programme length.
Deniz Aksoy
Technology & R&D · 6 min
Compressed agricultural fibre and mycelium binder, pressed to structural tolerance in 90 minutes.
Mert Çalışkan
Technology & R&D · 5 min
Woven reed strands reach 41 MPa in bending — enough for mid-rise floor cassettes.
Elif Baran
Technology & R&D · 7 min
A translucent cellular facade that insulates like a cavity and glows like alabaster.
Ipek Yıldırım
Technology & R&D · 8 min
The Istanbul practice moves BioSIP, ReedStrand and Bio-Cell into its standard detail library.
BFN Editorial Desk
Technology & R&D · 4 min
Sourcing within 180 km cut transport emissions by a further 6%.
BFN Research
Library
Practical, everyday applications — measured honestly.
Signals · 3 min
A 100 m² roof in a 600 mm/year climate yields roughly 48 m³ of usable water. Filtration, first-flush diverters and tank sizing decide whether it stays drinkable.
≈48 m³/year per 100 m² roof
BFN Editorial Desk
Signals · 3 min
Greywater is 50–80% of household discharge. Branched-drain and constructed-wetland systems return it to planting beds without pumps, chlorine or permits in most jurisdictions.
50–80% of household water
BFN Editorial Desk
Signals · 3 min
Stabilised earth blocks reach 4–8 MPa compressive strength with 5–8% binder. Confined masonry frames and geogrid reinforcement carry them through code in active zones.
4–8 MPa · ~0.06 kgCO₂e/kg
BFN Editorial Desk
Signals · 3 min
A 0.4 m² window shelf with 20 W of LED produces salad leaves every 21 days. The real variables are light hours, substrate reuse and honest electricity accounting.
21-day cycle · 20 W/m²
BFN Editorial Desk
Signals · 3 min
Organic waste in landfill emits methane 28× stronger than CO₂. Bokashi handles cooked food in 14 days indoors; worm bins are odourless; hot piles kill pathogens above 55 °C.
CH₄ = 28× CO₂ · 14-day bokashi
BFN Editorial Desk
Signals · 3 min
Power ≈ 9.81 × flow (l/s) × head (m) × 0.5 efficiency. A 10 l/s stream with 8 m of head runs a household baseload day and night, unlike intermittent PV.
≈390 W from 10 l/s @ 8 m
BFN Editorial Desk
Signals · 3 min
Foamed glass gravel insulates at 0.08 W/mK, drains, carries load and never rots — a single material replacing sub-base, insulation and vapour control under a slab.
0.08 W/mK · load-bearing fill
BFN Editorial Desk
Signals · 3 min
Cover cropping and no-till can add 0.2–0.5 t C/ha/year while cutting irrigation demand. The limits are honest soil testing and the five-year patience curve.
0.2–0.5 t C/ha/year
BFN Editorial Desk
Signals · 3 min
A COP of 3.5 collapses to 2.1 on oversized emitters and 65 °C flow. Fabric first, low-temperature radiators, then the machine — in that order, every time.
COP 3.5 → 2.1 when misapplied
BFN Editorial Desk
Signals · 3 min
External shading cuts solar gain by up to 80% — internal blinds by 25%. Combined with night ventilation and exposed mass it removes most cooling loads in dry climates.
External shading −80% solar gain
BFN Editorial Desk
Material stack
ReedStrand™ is the plant-fibre outer shell; Bio-Cell™ is the insulating inner core. Bonded together they are the BioSIP™ structural insulated panel — one component, two materials, no separate insulation trade.
The assembled panel — ReedStrand skins + Bio-Cell core · 0.14 W/m²K
BioSIP is not a single material: it is the assembly. A plant-based outer shell of pressed ReedStrand facings is bonded to a Bio-Cell insulation core, so skin and core work as one structural insulated panel. Load-bearing, vapour-open and fully compostable at end of life.
Outer shell / structural facing · 41 MPa bending
The outer layer of the panel: aligned reed strands, harvested annually from managed wetlands and laminated into a densified plant-fibre facing. It carries the bending and diaphragm forces on both faces of the BioSIP panel and spans 7.2 m as a floor or roof cassette.
Inner core / insulation layer · 0.036 W/mK · 62% light transmission
The inner layer of the panel: a cellular bio-polymer core placed continuously between the ReedStrand facings, keeping the insulation line unbroken and vapour-open. Used alone as a facade element, the same cell structure diffuses daylight deep into plan.
Your voice
Share your thoughts for a better world. Your ideas matter.
Post your ideas, your work and your projects — a detail, a measurement, a mistake, a bill. Every contribution leaves something behind for sustainable buildings, and helps someone build warmer, cheaper and safer.
Commenting is open to the movement. Choose one of two doors:
Loading comments…
