In July this year, Selena Group’s latest product – COOL-R – covered the roof of Europe’s largest fish market located […]
In July this year, Selena Group’s latest product – COOL-R – covered the roof of Europe’s largest fish market located in Madrid. The innovative coating, which combines the function of roof cooling and water-resistance, has been applied as part of renovation of the 33k m² building of Mercado Central de Pescados. It was only thanks to the application of Selena’s solution that the temperature inside the building dropped by 7° C. This has a direct impact on lowering the building’s cooling costs and improving the comfort of work in addition to reducing losses of the goods sold.
“The roof of Mercado Central de Pescados – Mercamadrid – is a breakthrough project for us, not just because of its size, but also due to the effect achieved: the investor has already confirmed that the temperature inside the building dropped by a significant 7° C. This brings tangible financial benefits for the owner of the facility as the cost of cooling or ice production will go down. Overall, the work on technology, brand philosophy and business model took more than two years. However, the information we receive directly from the market, from satisfied users, reinforces our belief that we bring to our clients a global tailor-made solution which is a response to a complex, civilization problem”, says Maciej Lubomski, Waterproofing Division Director, Selena FM S.A.
The fish market in Madrid is the second largest fish market in the world. It supplies products to retailers, wholesalers, restaurant owners and private individuals. The total size of Mercado Central de Pescados is 33,000 m2. The annual sales of fish and seafood, fresh and frozen, are in the order of 140 million kilograms for a value of EUR 1.3 billion. To secure the goods sold at the market, its on-site factory delivers 20 tonnes of ice to trade stands each day. At such a specific facility it is absolutely essential to maintain a stable and relatively low temperature inside the commercial space. From the point of view of sellers, an appropriately low temperature not only helps keep fish and seafood fresh, but above all reduces potential losses of goods. In turn, the investor – Mercamadrid – found it critical to reduce the building’s cooling costs.
COOL-R is a solution that comprehensively responds to Mercamadrid’s problems. Once the coating is applied, the roof temperature falls by a significant 70%, as a result of which the temperature inside the facility drops even by 10oC. The product is also characterised by the effectiveness that is unprecedented in the market. The technology was designed to achieve the highest Solar Reflectance Index (SRI). The SRI is a function of two key parameters: reflectivity, which is a measure of the ability to reflect solar radiation, and emissivity – the ability to release the absorbed heat. Thanks to its unique technology, the innovative COOL-R coating has an extremely high SRI of 107, which makes it the best solution in the European market.
Application of the COOL-R coating is a part of a big investment carried out by Mercamadrid. The main goal was to implement an innovative/modern and environmentally friendly system which cools the object. The value of the whole project came to 3 mln Euro.
Since the very beginning, Selena has been flexibly responding to current trends, creating a new quality of construction chemicals, including those for sustainable construction. The Group markets solutions optimising the energy efficiency of buildings or increasing the size of green areas in urban environments. In the case of the COOL-R project, reduction of the demand for electricity necessary for interior cooling leads to reduction of CO2 emissions to the atmosphere.
“With the COOL-R project we are creating a completely new quality and value in the global roofing market. Although we offer our clients an innovative construction chemistry product, they in fact get a guarantee of higher work comfort and reduced running costs of buildings. It is very important that Selena is one of the leaders promoting modern, global solutions significantly affecting the work and life of people”, says Marcin Macewicz, CEO of Selena FM S.A.
