UKPHC17: Passivhaus Futures
Achieving Passivhaus comfort may seem like hocus pocus to newcomers, but the 2017 UK Passivhaus Conference divulged best practice tricks to meet building performance treats.
The forward-looking 2017 UK Passivhaus Conference was well attended, with over 300 delegates. The opening panel looked at the trajectory of the Standard in the UK, with the remaining sessions exploring current best practice and where the standard may be heading.
What does it take to get Passivhaus adopted into policy?
- Passivhaus is about people – Get people out of the office and onto the site; A couple of Passivhaus enthusiastic policymakers have been fundamental in getting Vancouver & New York to adopt Passivhaus city-wide. The same can be seen here in the UK with regions such as Exeter and Norwich. Take advantage by visiting a Passivhaus for free at the upcoming International Passivhaus Open Days 10-12 November.
- Good Communication - Focus on the occupant comfort benefits to sell the standard to the masses. Do you want a building that is comfortable & healthy all year round with very low running costs and great air quality? It’s a no brainer! Maintaining and translating Passivhaus expertise from conceptual beginnings to the end of successful delivery can be difficult. It is up to us to prove that it works well and is a solution to eliminating fuel poverty, and meeting long-term decarbonisation targets. The market needs help to recognise the value and USP of Passivhaus for quality & performance. Additional cost, delivery times, material supply are now non-arguments. Tomas O'Leary asks 'what’s your excuse?'
- Provide choices - Learn from others to find out what works and what doesn’t: Although Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council in Ireland had decided to mandate Passivhaus ‘or equivalent’ at a regional level in 2015, progress has been stunted. The media reacted negatively, deeming the clause inflexible & excessive. If we insist on all projects being certified, Passivhaus may stay niche warns keynote speaker O’leary. Vancouver have stated that Passivhaus is a preferred solution in the city's zero emissions plan for new buildings, however there is also option B for Low Emissions Green Building, similar options are available in New York City Local Laws.
- Collect more data! - A strong message from the popular Passivhaus futures sessions examining occupant wellbeing, whole-life carbon & embodied energy was that we require more quantitative evidence. This provides a great opportunity for inter-disciplinary collaboration within the wider construction industry. Post-occupancy monitoring and soft landings are crucial to understand how buildings are performing, feeding back into strengthening good communication for the masses. Carrowbreck Meadow shared POE surveys, and were happy to reveal some common perceived Passivhaus obstacles had been eliminated.
- One Size does not fit all - For the experts and professionals discovering intricate complexities and nuances of perfecting best practice, there were plenty of reminders that there is no single design fix:
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I'm hoping that people will take away that building to Passivhaus is not a one solution fits all approach. The session I chaired will have illustrated the huge gap between those who try to slightly tweak the usual way of doing things (and end up with compromised design and costs implications), and those who really think it through with passion in a lot of detail (not only looking for a marketing stamp) and achieve optimum project form, and design at reasonable cost. I really enjoyed the conference and always leave the event buzzing with enthusiasm about the future of Passivhaus!
Marion Baeli, PDP London
Catch up by viewing the #UKPHC17 below. If you missed anything, presentations will be available on the Conference website soon. Click on the speaker to see if their presentation is available to download.
The forward-looking 2017 UK Passivhaus Conference was well attended, with over 300 delegates. The opening panel looked at the trajectory of the Standard in the UK, with the remaining sessions explore current best practice and where the standard may be heading.
Many thanks to all the sponsors & supporters, speakers & exhibitors who helped make the event happen. Please let us know if you have a blog/ article about the event so that we may help share. Keep an eye out for our announcement regarding the date and venue for the 2018 UK Passivhaus Conference.
This was the best UK Passivhaus Conference to date!
Jonathan Hines, Director, Architype
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