Socialist modernist architecture in the Balkan has left a valuable legacy of remarkable buildings from this century, which brought a mixture of new experiences and local traditions. Unfortunately, after the 1990s, many of these buildings have been neglected, improperly treated, or abandoned. This paper focuses on the iconic socialist modernist office building “Rilindja” in Prishtina, Kosovo, which was built in 1979. In 2010, the building envelope was changed in the name of revitalization, without considering the energy aspect. The study aims to present energy performance analysis through cost-optimal renovation measures of the building envelope while restoring the architectural values before the last renovation. Using Archicad and EcoDesigner STAR, a BIM model was created, and energy analysis was conducted. The findings indicate that eighteen proposed energy efficiency measures can achieve a reduction in energy consumption for heating and cooling of more than 80% over the life cycle period of 20 years. The comparison before and after renovation considering restoring and preserving the inherent values, while integrating energy efficiency measures was necessary, as there is a lack of such studies in the general literature. Finally, the potential of restoring the collective memory through cost-optimal analysis is emphasized as an approach for similar cases.

A major challenge our society faces today is the energy consumption of buildings. Building stock is responsible for about 40% of energy consumption worldwide. The same applies to Kosovo, where a large number of houses are poorly weatherized and inefficient in terms of energy consumption. Most of the energy consumption in the household sector in Kosovo is dedicated to the needs for heating purposes. Furthermore, many of these houses use wood or coal for heating, releasing a lot of gases in the air and so contributing to an increased air pollution both indoors and outdoors. The Faculty of Civil Engineering and Architecture at the University of Prishtina “Hasan Prishtina” aims to address the issue of energy efficiency for these houses. Specifically, in this study we intend to evaluate various retrofit measures applicable in the country for typical masonry houses and identify the cost-efficient solution. This paper reports the initial results of the study and discusses related challenges.