Ireland is to participate in a pioneering European initiative aiming to boost the availability of quality building whole life carbon data, a critical step towards full decarbonisation.
Simon Jones reviews new book exploring the Grenfell tragedy.
Scotland’s minister for zero carbon buildings is proposing to make the passive house standard, or a new Scottish equivalent, the minimum energy efficiency standard for new build homes from the end of 2024.
Over the past two years Passive House Plus editor Jeff Colley has been moonlighting as co-host of Zero Ambitions, a weekly podcast that wrestles with the challenge of how to deliver the scale and ambition of decarbonisation and sustainability in buildings required to avoid a hellish future.
The World Green Building Council (WorldGBC) has launched a set of principles aimed at guiding national governments to develop effective building policies and programmes to accelerate a decarbonised future.
In the first of planned quarterly updates on the government funded SEAI grant schemes, Environment minister Eamonn Ryan and the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) have announced that almost 27,200 energy upgrades were completed in 2022, up 80 per cent on 2021, while applications are up 140 per cent.
The potential of the passive house standard to change the world isn’t restricted to tackling climate change – it’s about social justice too.
Changes include embodied carbon, zero emission buildings and minimum energy standards
The Land Development Agency (LDA), in partnership with Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, has broken ground on the largest public housing scheme in the state in recent years – a passive house scheme at Shanganagh in Shankill, Co Dublin.
The Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Leo Varadkar, TD, has launched Construct Innovate – a new Enterprise Ireland Technology Centre hosted at University of Galway which may play a key role in the transition to sustainable building in Ireland.
The energy used to heat, cool and light our buildings is responsible for almost a quarter of Ireland’s national carbon emissions – with the carbon embodied in the buildings themselves representing over an eighth of the total, a new report has revealed.
The Irish Green Building Council (IGBC) today launched a new version of its Home Performance Index (HPI) sustainable home certification system at its annual residential conference, Better Homes 2022. The focus of the event was on delivering low carbon homes at scale.
Do thicker insulated walls, triple glazed windows, & MVHR ventilation systems tip the scales unfavourably for passive house when it comes to embodied carbon?
As Russia weaponises gas exports, the European Commission has proposed a gas demand reduction plan, to cut use in Europe by 15 per cent until next spring.
The world’s first passive house hospital has been certified by the Passive House Institute – showing that the standard can be applied to even to the most demanding building types.
The AECB conference 2022 will focus on practical solutions to decarbonising buildings, with a particular emphasis on timber-based approaches with the potential to deliver low energy, healthy buildings at scale while minimising the use of precious resources and impact on the environment.
A new online hub aimed at upskilling the construction sector is now live.
New radon maps, launched by the Environmental Protection Agency today at the National Radon Forum, show an increased risk from radon in Ireland, with 170,000 homes now predicted to be at risk of radon exposure above the national reference level.
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Having joined Saint-Gobain in 2007, Holohan has spent the last nine years as Saint-Gobain Ireland’s marketing director. Prior to this, he held the positions of marketing manager with Moy Isover and strategy manager for Saint-Gobain Ireland.
08-05-2023 Marketplace
Leading heating technology manufacturer Grant has sparked the interest of many self-builders throughout Ireland, with its integrated heating packages for new builds, due to the high efficiencies and substantial long-term financial and carbon savings the packages can deliver for the homeowner.
08-05-2023 Marketplace
Medite Smartply has announced a donation of €250,000 to Technological University (TU) Dublin, to support the development of Design + Construct, a centre for collaborative, multidisciplinary education that will drive performance in the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) sector through talent and technology.
08-05-2023 Marketplace
Partel, a leading manufacturer of airtight and windtight membranes, has developed two new fire-rated breather membranes that exceed current fire safety regulation levels for high-rise and high-risk buildings: Exoperm Duro A1 and Exoperm Mono Duro A2.
27-04-2023 Marketplace
BaseTherm, a liquid floor insulation system produced and installed using a mobile floor insulation factory, has gained NSAI Agrément certification.
Two Partel airtight systems, Exoperm Mono SA 250 and Vara Fluid Spray, have been evaluated and certified as Passive House Components by the Passive House Institute in Darmstadt, Germany. Both…
Leading insulation manufacturer Xtratherm is to be renamed Unilin Insulation from the start of 2023 onwards.
Ecocem, Europe’s leader in low carbon cement technologies, has announced a major step in enabling the global cement industry to decarbonise on a trajectory compliant with the Paris Agreement to limit global warming to 1.5…
Irish mechanical ventilation manufacturer ProAir has become one of the first companies in the world to gain Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for mechanical ventilation systems.
Leading sustainable building product supplier Ecological Building Systems has launched Retro EcoWall, a new quick-to-install internal wall insulation system ideal for traditional buildings, which is designed to meet the requirements of the nearly zero energy building…
Leading heating technology manufacturer Grant has launched its new Spira Pell condensing wood pellet boiler.
The government substantially increased the available grant for attic insulation earlier this year, and given the expected boost in attic upgrades this is likely to stimulate, John Egan of Cork-based…
Leading sustainable heating systems provider Hevac Group has launched the De Deitrich Elensio hot water heat pump range onto the Irish market – using a refrigerant with a risibly low…
A garden room built by Cork-based Blue Mountain Garden Rooms has a significantly lower carbon footprint when compared to an equivalent log cabin with a concrete base, or to a…
Grant has announced its membership of Octabuild in a move that will see the company strengthen its relations in the building and construction industry and showcase its award-winning home heating technologies.
Leading EPS insulation manufacturer Kore is set to launch Kore Low Carbon EPS onto the Irish market – unlocking dramatic reductions in embodied carbon without affecting performance.
World-renowned Irish moisture meter pioneer Tramex has launched a new cloud-based system for budding building pathologists – to enable users to remotely monitor buildings and detect potential indoor air quality…
Leading heating expert Firebird is now offering full service design for renewable heating systems.
Partel has become the first manufacturer of building envelope systems in Ireland to publish Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for airtight and windtight membranes.
Kilsaran is the first company to be awarded NSAI Agrément certification for external wall insulation to lightweight gauge steel (LGS) frame substrates. KEWI (Kilsaran External Wall Insulation) can be applied to LGS walls, for both infill…
How flexible can heat pumps be to handle what may be inexactly defined heating demands, asks Toby Cambray?
Mass timber comes into its own in terms of decarbonising tall buildings, which tend to rely on high embodied carbon materials such as steel and reinforced concrete. But regulatory change is needed to enable mass timber to fulfil its potential, as IGBC head of policy and advocacy Marion Jammet explains.
Editor Jeff Colley remembers Paul Doran, one of Ireland's foremost builders, who has tragically passed away.
Over the last century architects have unwittingly played a key role in terms of climate collapse and a slew of linked catastrophic environmental and social harms. A new book aims to change that.
In the latest missive in his series on the history of low energy design, Dr Marc Ó'Riain looks to some wacky and wonderful experimentation in a project that aimed to transform public perception of Milton Keynes.
To kick start the new year, have a listen to co-founders Jeff Colley and Dan Hyde on what they've learned in the 20 years since our first issue came out.
In the #BuildingLife Ambassador Spotlight Series, Passive House Plus is profiling leaders who have endorsed the Irish Green Building Council’s call to address the environmental impacts of buildings across their lifecycle.
In the aftermath of COP26, Dr Peter Rickaby asks what is the government’s plan to deliver the deep, whole-house, quality-assured retrofits needed to get us to net zero by 2050?
The energy crises of the 1970s did not prompt a major shift in Europe from foreign oil and gas towards energy efficiency and renewables. Will we learn this time around, wonders Dr Marc O Riain
Our abundance of holiday homes and other vacant dwellings could be used to house Ukrainian refugees, writes Mel Reynolds.
Marc O Riain explores how policy on both side of the Atlantic in the 1980s sabotaged a nascent revolution in renewables and energy conservation.
Why is there is such antipathy towards putting ventilation at the forefront of our Covid prevention strategy, asks Residential Ventilation Association of Ireland chair and co-founder David McHugh.
Once poorly understood by the mainstream building industry, airtightness is now increasingly seen as one of the most crucial objectives on any building project. Not only is it vital for energy efficiency, it’s also key for thermal comfort and for protecting a building’s structure from dampness and mould. In this comprehensive guide to airtightness, we look at why it’s so important, how exactly it’s measured, and most importantly, how to achieve it on site.
04-02-2019 Guides
Fuelled by the need to build quickly and to increasingly tight sustainability standards, the market for timber frame and mass timber construction is growing rapidly. This detailed guide covers many of the main established and emerging techniques, and looks at key issues to address if you’re considering a timber-based build.
05-07-2019 Guides
Cement is responsible for up to 8% of global carbon emissions, and in this guide, sustainable design expert Jay Stuart looks at ways to minimise its environmental impact through good design, and at some of the alternative, lower carbon cement and concrete products on the market.
30-07-2020 Guides
As demand for super-insulated and airtight building structures grows, insulating concrete formwork (ICF) is rapidly gaining popularity as a method of construction. But what exactly is ICF, what are its key advantages, and why is it so well suited to passive house and low energy construction?
16-10-2018 Guides