Isover has announced the launch of the 2019 Isover Awards. Following on from their previous incarnation, the Isover Energy Efficiency Awards, the new Isover Awards will be open to both contractors and architects/specification professionals, and seek to celebrate excellence in energy efficient building and design.
The first phase of development is now complete at Clog Na Léinn, a new scheme of A1-rated ‘zero energy’ homes in Collinstown, Co Westmeath. Developed and built by NJ Doyne and designed by architect Louis Peppard, the first 13 houses are now finished, with the first residents moving in just as Passive House Plus went to print.
The Green Room, the Irish Green Building Council’s annual non-residential sustainable building gathering, takes place this year on 10 April in the Davenport Hotel, Dublin.
Ecological Building Systems scooped three awards at the recent Architecture & Building Expo held in the RDS, Dublin. This event brings together the country’s leading architects, architectural technologists, industry professionals and specifiers.
Keystone Lintels has received certification from the British Board of Agrément (BBA) for its Hi-therm+ Lintel. According to the company, this makes it the only BBA approved one-piece lintel solution which achieves the appendix R value for steel lintels in Part L 2013 (depending on wall construction).
Viessmann has introduced two new air source heat pumps, the Vitocal 200-A and Vitocal 222-A, which boast innovative noise-reduction technology. Both operate so quietly that they are suitable for densely built-up areas such as terraced housing estates, and both deliver high energy efficiency with low operating costs, according to Viessmann.
Foam glass gravel provides a sustainable alternative to traditional aggregates and hardcores, according to Mike Wye Ltd & Associates, the leading supplier of traditional and sustainable building materials.
Leading ventilation supplier CVC Direct has advised anyone specifying an MVHR (mechanical ventilation with heat recovery) system to understand the basics of relative humidity and consider their own local climate before choosing a system with an enthalpy heat exchanger.
The Welsh assembly has voted through new legally-binding carbon emissions targets for the country. The targets bind the country to reduce emissions by 80%, relative to 1990 levels, by 2050.
The revelations in Passive House Plus issue 24 about failed external insulation retrofits in the Fishwick area of Preston have been followed up by UK national media, putting pressure on Ofgem, the electricity and gas regulator, to make more effort to help those affected.
A series of nationwide forums designed to help housing and construction professionals improve home energy efficiency across the UK has secured support from regional low carbon champions.
Building designers need to undertake much deeper analyses of overheating risks, and do so under future climate change scenarios, in order to ensure their buildings can adapt and remain comfortable for occupants in a warming world.