Innovative radiant cooling for urban heat mitigation

AS the Gulf region continues its rapid urban development, 2025 is setting the pace as one of the hottest years on record, escalating the threat of extreme heat to urban populations and to the construction workforce. Addressing this challenge head-on is KlimaKover, a new low-energy, modular cooling system developed by Danish architecture firm Henning Larsen in collaboration with the University of Pennsylvania and AIL Research.

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KlimaKover offers a scalable, sustainable solution for cooling public and workspaces, using radiant cooling technology that is claimed to consume a remarkable 10 times less power than conventional air-conditioning.

MODULAR DESIGN

The system's construction is built around modular 4'x4' panels and delivers radiant cooling and heating without condensation, making it ideal for the flexible and fast-paced demands of construction sites and urban infrastructure. The panels can be mass-produced for approximately $75 per square foot, ensuring cost-effective scalability, according to Henning Larsen.

"We can imagine Klimakover shading schoolyards, bus stops, street vendors, or construction sites, showing how low-energy cooling can scale across cities," says Jakob Strømann-Andersen, Henning Larsen's Director of Innovation and Sustainability.