Energy Action to host 8th fuel poverty conference
Written by News Desk
Energy Action is hosting its eighth annual Fuel Poverty Conference in Dublin on 21 October 2019, at the Croke Park Conference Centre. The Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment Richard Bruton TD will open the conference.
A new property development company in the north-west is putting the passive house standard at the heart of its business. Leeds-based Pure Haus is currently embarking on its very first project, a scheme of two high-specification houses in Oakenshaw, Bradford that will be built to the passive house standard, and is designed by architects ArkleBoyce.
Durkan to break ground on 47 Killiney passive houses
Written by News Desk
Durkan Residential are set to break ground this month on one of Ireland’s largest passive house schemes to date, Rockfield. Situated on Church Road, Killiney, the scheme will comprise 47 units, including 15 generously proportioned 171 m2 houses, 16 duplexes averaging 115 m2, and 16 ground floor units averaging 80 m2 each.
Bank of Ireland has unveiled a suite of green loans and interest rates to encourage home owners and businesses to be more energy efficient. The new initiatives include a green interest rate discount for borrowers buying or building energy efficient homes, and a green home improvement loan for energy efficiency retrofits. Businesses, including farmers, will also be able to access reduced interest rates for investment in energy saving improvements.
Diverging trends at the Frankfurt Motor Show
Written by Mark Shirley
Imagine you are a business owner in a changing, Willy Wonka-esque world wherein you have to entertain two extreme ends of your market to satisfy clients.
Office-to-flat conversions “deeply worrying”
Written by Kate de Selincourt
Rights allowing the conversion of commercial buildings into dwellings, without planning permission, are potentially creating unhealthy living conditions.
Kingspan Insulated Panels and Kingspan Insulation have jointly been shortlisted for the sustainable manufacturing award at the prestigious The Manufacturer MX Awards, recognising the company’s “commitment to sustainable practice at all levels of their business.”
Low carbon concrete blocks now available in Ireland
Written by News Desk
Low carbon concrete blocks are now widely available on the Irish market – bringing up to 50% reductions in embodied CO2 – and Passive House Plus helped make it happen.
BER data indicates national house building growth – except for Dublin
Written by Jeff Colley
Significantly more new homes (16.5%) were built in Ireland in the first eight months of 2019 compared to the same period in 2018 – with double digit declines in Dublin cancelled out by strong growth in the rest of the country, new analysis by Passive House Plus indicates.
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Richard Tibenham of Greenlite Energy Assessors says a case of two highly energy-inefficient and ‘hard-to-treat’ buildings, built in 2013, should serve as a warning to the whole construction sector.
Secured by Design: crime prevention with CO2 co-benefits
Kenny McHugh
More than one million homes have been built around the UK to security standards required by Secured by Design (SBD), the UK’s national police crime prevention initiative, with significant reductions in crime and with considerable benefits to the environment. SBD senior development officer, Kenny McHugh, explains what SBD could offer to Ireland.
Reflections on sustainable Nordic architecture
Written by Sofie Pelsmakers
It’s no coincidence that Nordic countries are some of the most advanced in the world when it comes to low energy design. In this article, three assistant professors of architecture based in Denmark and Finland discuss areas where we can learn from our Nordic neighbours — and where we might return the favour.
Leading low energy retrofit contractor Encon has teamed up with Waterford Credit Union to offer low interest loans to anyone thinking undertaking of a home energy upgrade, in a bid to help develop the retrofit market in the region.