ZAG - Zavod za gradbeništvo Slovenije

ZAG Ljubljana is Slovenian national building and civil engineering institute. It is an independent, impartial and non-profit organization, which fulfils all the requirements of the EEC Council Directive No. 89/106 regarding approval bodies which carry out the testing and attestation of conformity of construction products. ZAG Ljubljana carries out its work in the following fields: materials, building physics, structures, geotechnics and the traffic infrastructure, and metrology. In the field of research and development, ZAG Ljubljana cooperates with many similar institutes and university faculties, both in Slovenia and in other countries.

In the fields of the thermal characteristics of materials and structures, the efficient use of energy, and the achievement of satisfactory dwelling conditions from the point of view of thermal insulation, the Laboratory for the Efficient Use of Energy and Renewables performs the following work:

• measurements of the thermal conductivity, thermal transmittance, coefficient of thermal contact, specific heat capacity, diffusion coefficient of materials and structures, and of the air permeability and watertightness of windows and balcony doors

• measurements, in buildings, of the airtightness, thermal conductivity, ventilation rates, micro-climate, and illumination of dwellings and working premises,

• issuing of certificates of conformity for thermal insulation materials (glass and rock wool)

• measurements of the transmittance of light and heat through glass and other transparent materials,

• observations, in an artificial climate chamber, using a wall panel of maximum dimensions 2.5 x 2.5 m, of the accelerated weathering of structures during the simulation of cyclically changing climatic conditions - sunshine, rain, freezing conditions,

• studies of the thermal transmittance, diffusion characteristics, thermal stability, and specific thermal losses of buildings,

• studies of the thermal losses and gains of solar energy and of internal sources of energy, for complete buildings,

• thermographic analyses,

• analyses of the quality of thermal insulation, including analysis of thermal bridges,

• determination of the optimum thermal insulation of buildings.

• research regarding the passive use of solar energy and studies of the active use of solar energy, including the do-it-yourself construction of solar collectors,

• research of the properties of transparent thermal insulation layers.