Like the NuThinkers in the "myMood" project, these three students took their inspiration from a creation by fellow student Nele Ratjen, who created a design-rich and easily reversible and zonable floor heating system for DOMOTEX 2018. Their fresh new take on this project focuses more on pressing challenges like CO2 reduction, resource conservation and the climate crisis.

Visionary yet highly practical

The "Warm-Up" team – which, like the "myMood" team, is coming to DOMOTEX 2020 with a full-size prototype – has developed a concept which shows that the work done at Hannover University of Applied Sciences and Art goes beyond the merely experimental and visionary and is highly problem-focused and practical. "Warm-Up" is an underfloor heating system that combines eye-popping attraction with solid functionality in a solution that is an absolute credit to its developers. So, what’s so different about it? The transparent heating hoses rise up out of the horizontal plane to form a sumptuously warm, room-dividing sculpture of flowing water. The result is a unique room atmosphere that combines comforting physical warmth with alluring visual appeal. The heating hose is arranged around a minimalist metal frame to create a sculptural heat source that doubles as a room divider.

Microclimate for the greater good

As well as lending the room vertical good looks, the heating system concentrates heat in the part of the room where it is needed most, avoiding unnecessary heating of unused spaces and creating an energy-saving microclimate that’s as good for the environment as it is for comfort. In plain technical language, "Warm-Up" comprises a module that is set into the floor and a vertical room-divider module consisting of a colored aluminum frame and hoses. The heating system is highly versatile and can be removed easily for repairs, modifications or replacement. The in-floor module is dimensionally similar to a floorboard and is installed under the floor covering – in this case, oak parquet. The short sides of this module have connections for the heating hose that runs under the flooring, and inside the module there are inlet and outlet connections for the vertical hose that is draped about the frame. The frame itself is bolted onto the floor module via in-built flanges that provide added stability. What makes "Warm-Up" hip, if not downright cool, is its scope for creativity. The heating hose can be arranged about the frame in a multiplicity of ways for the ultimate in personalized interior design. It remains to be seen whether some other enterprising NuThinkers can work similar wonders for basement windows and guttering!