Stephen Wittkopf

In research, Dr Wittkopf has led several projects in the area of advanced daylighting and building-integrated photovoltaics. As one of the key members of the Zero Energy Building (ZEB) project, Stephen heads the design and research on building integrated photovoltaic and advanced daylighting of the zero energy building. The ZEB is the first existing building in Southeast Asia to be fully retrofitted with green building design features and technologies.

Dr Stephen Wittkopf is an Architect and Professor with the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Switzerland (HSLU), where he leads the Competence Center for Materials, Structure and Energy in Architecture at the School of Engineering and Architecture. Dr Wittkopf envisages future Architecture to be both appealing and energy-efficient, which appears to be oxymoron today. Its solar active skins will naturally be energetically active and architecturally appealing to create indoor and outdoor spaces of high visual comfort. His mission is therefore to develop technologies, methods and demonstrators in the area of daylighting and building-integrated photovoltaics with an international and multidisciplinary research team looking at regional and international markets. His research track record in this area includes the realisation of plus-energy office buildings, setting up of ISO-certified research and service facilities, filing of patents, publications in leading international refereed journals, memberships in international scientific organisations, international research awards and the acquisition of major funding from industry and public grants.

From 2001 to April 2012, Dr Wittkopf was with the National University of Singapore (NUS), jointly appointed as Associate Professor at the Department of Architecture and Director at the Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore (SERIS), founding and leading the cluster on Solar and Energy Efficient Buildings. Dr Wittkopf obtained a Master of Architecture in 1994 from RWTH Aachen in Germany, a Post Graduate Diploma in 1997 from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETH), and a Doctorate Degree in 2001 from Darmstadt University of Technlogy (TUD, Germany).