Open Source Content Management

MBC Timber Frame Ltd has announced the opening of its new manufacturing and design premises at Quedgeley Court, Gloucester. The company told Passive House Plus that it has the capacity to manufacture 50,000 to 60,000 square metres of passive housing per year at the new facility. 

Cork based cellulose insulation manufacturer Ecocel has won a bronze Green Apple award, the prestigious international award for the built environment and architectural heritage. The award was presented to Ecocel’s managing director John Egan at a ceremony on 8 August in London.  

Leading passive house design and product supplier Young Design Build has announced that it has become the Irish and UK agent for D&M solar shading, the leading German manufacturer of external shutter technology and blind solutions. Stephen Young of Young Design Build told Passive House Plus that D&M’s systems are designed to prevent overheating in buildings with large expanses of glass. 

Leading renewables supplier Origen Energy has launched the Robur K18 domestic gasfired heat pump to the Irish market. Robur’s gas-fired heat pumps also picked up the award for Best Energy Efficient Product at this year’s SEAI Energy Show awards.  

The Bambeau range of ecological and sustainable bamboo flooring, panelling and veneer solutions is now available in Ireland. The company offers a wide range of attractive, ecologically friendly and sustainably produced materials. 

Two leading Irish manufacturers of passive house components have both received passive house certification for their systems. 

Buckinghamshire-based passive house door manufacturer Urban Front can now integrate airtight, insulated, thermally broken Petwalk pet flaps into their door systems, as one of the company’s latest door projects shows. 

Kore, based in Kilnaleck, Co. Cavan, is the first company in Ireland to obtain integrated ISO certification for both the ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 14001:2015 standards from the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI). ISO 9001 is one of the most widely used management tools worldwide, while ISO 14001 is the standard for environmental management. Both standards are internationally recognised.

In October 2015, PYC Systems carried out the first of several air tests at the Hilltop project in Richard’s Castle on the Hertfordshire— Shropshire border, Architype’s first small scale residential passive house project. The first blower door test result was 0.59 air changes per hour (ACH), prior to insulating the envelope, which everyone was keen to improve on as it only marginally passed the passive house standard and was prior to fitting services, which are known to increase the risk of air leaks. 

The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland’s (SEAI) annual two-day business-to-business event, the Energy Show 2016, was a huge success with visitors up a quarter on last year.