Crown House Technologies’ Post

It was our pleasure to take part in the 2024 UK Passivhaus Conference last week delivering a masterclass on Passivhaus facades. The event was organised by the Passivhaus Trust and hosted by University of Oxford, Laing O'Rourke and partners at the Stephen A. Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities in Oxford. During the two-day event, our business unit leader, Mark Dellar, shared the design, manufacturing and assembly solution for the façade and detailed how this solution has stepped up to the Passivhaus challenge for thermal and air-tightness requirements. In addition to the developed design solution, our team has also developed a very detailed inspection and test plan regime, with corresponding check sheets. These sheets will be used as verification documents issued to the Passivhaus institute for final certification. The day 1 masterclass also included presentations from Steve Holland, Laing O’Rourke project director, Jennifer McCulloch, project engineer and Owain Dobson, CHT’s operations leader. The Schwarzman Centre is the largest building project ever undertaken by the university and is expected to be the largest Passivhaus building in the UK with the world’s first Passivhaus concert hall. Passivhaus means that the heat losses from the building are reduced to such an extent that little heating is required. Instead, most of the heat comes from “passive” sources, including the sun, internal kit and appliances, human occupants, and warm air. The building is optimised for energy performance, combining an air-tight build with triple glazing, high performance insulation and specialist ventilation, ensuring that the building remains ambient while providing high air quality, so it’s healthier for occupants too. In fact, the insulation used in the façade alone is enough to cover three football pitches. 100 photovoltaic (solar) panels will help to provide renewable electricity to the building too. 

Interesting to read about the UK Passivhaus conference by Sioned Holland Architype thanks for sharing Elrond Burrell. Key points - Passivhaus is playing a key role in policy around measurable carbon reduction and achieving net zero in the UK and beyond. - The rigour and detail associated with Passivhaus provides a risk management tool and degree of certainty in a construction market with high price volatility. - focus on operational carbon as well as embodied carbon is necessary to achieve net zero and to achieve clean energy transition. #passivhaus #retrofit #deepenergyretrofit #cleanenergytransition

Why should you add the #TallBuildingConference to your events diary? Providing unique insight into the engineering feats that are shaping the UK's city skylines, the Tall Buildings Conference focuses on iconic superstructures that are transforming the high-rise sector. With an impressive array of speakers, the conference brings together those who are at the cutting-edge of the high-rise industry. I will be part of a panel debate titled "Can Skyscrapers be Circular?" To be clear - this debate will not be about curvy buildings, but how circular economy principles can be (or can they?) be integrated into the design, construction and operation of tall buildings. Should be an interesting and thought-provoking conversation. For more information and to book your ticket, visit: https://lnkd.in/eJXDi6BT #TallBuildings #mottmacdonald #circulareconomy

Thrilled to kick off a 3-day journey for the Passivhaus Open Day, where I'll be exploring some truly iconic projects!   On my list:  *Old Holloway *Purdown View UWE *Llama Croft   A huge thank you to the Passivhaus Trust and the entire Passivhaus Community for making this possible. It's an incredible opportunity to see Passivhaus buildings in action, and I'm excited to continue expanding my knowledge during this valuable time.   Delivering buildings that prioritize optimal internal comfort while minimizing environmental impact and reducing operating costs is about more than just construction—it’s about making a real difference. This approach has a profound impact and leverage on individual and collective awareness. The Passivhaus standard is a powerful framework for addressing the climate emergency and promoting climate justice, showing us that a sustainable future is not just possible, but achievable. 🌱   As I transition from on-site work to design and consultancy, I feel more aligned than ever with my career purpose: tackling contemporary challenges through innovative, sustainable solutions. The Passivhaus approach deeply resonates with my values, and I’m excited to contribute to a more sustainable and equitable future through the built environment.   #Passivhaus #PassivhausTrust #PassivhausOpenDay #Innovation #Architecture #SustainableDesign #FutureOfBuilding #ClimateAction #ClimateJustice

The #Passivhaus standard, originating from Germany, has been gaining traction in the UK as a leading methodology for designing and constructing energy-efficient buildings. This rigorous standard ensures that buildings consume minimal energy for heating and cooling, thereby reducing their carbon footprint and operational costs. In the UK, the adoption of the Passivhaus standard aligns with the government's commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and achieving #netzero2050. The standard's principles of super-insulation, #airtightness, high-performance #doorsandwindows along with mechanical ventilation heat recovery systems, are key to achieving these ambitious goals. Professionals in the #construction industry are increasingly embracing the Passivhaus standard, recognising its potential to create comfortable living spaces that are both sustainable and #costeffectivesolutions The UK's  #climate poses unique challenges, but the adaptability of the Passivhaus principles allows for innovative solutions tailored to the British environment. As more projects in the UK achieve Passivhaus  #certification it becomes evident that this standard is not just a trend but a necessary step towards a  #sustainablefuture. It's an exciting time for  #architects,  #engineers,  #designers and  #builders who are at the forefront of this  #ecofriendly  #evolution. Get in touch for your Passivhaus certified fire doors, and learn what can be achieved in quality of living standards.

Next Thursday 2nd May, Director, Duncan Walters, presents at Retrofit Meets: University Estates, #Retrofit24!   We’d love it if you come along to learn about our process and projects. A large part of our work has always been in breathing new life into old buildings, and it's now a more important typology than ever before. Whether historic or contemporary, we relish the opportunity to extend a building's lifetime and fully realise its potential in a new context. A circular approach to both structural and facade materials, and in some cases entire buildings, has a huge advantage when it comes to minimising our carbon budget.   We'll cover the sustainability benefits and outcomes for deep retrofit in the higher education sector, how best to navigate the risks and opportunities for the client, how our digital tools have advanced the data set, how our benchmarked projects sit within the #netzero trajectory, and how we apply that knowledge to masterplan higher education portfolios. Lastly, we'll run through our input on the structure and facade design of our feature study - London South Bank University.   The event is free to attend and you can join next Thursday 6.00pm at The Building Centre by booking tickets here: https://lnkd.in/gEiC9Bca   Case Study: WilkinsonEyre London South Bank University Co-Panelists: Aylin Orbasli (Professor, Oxford Brookes University), Emily Charalambous (National Key Account Manager, Panasonic Heating & Cooling Solutions Europe), Tom Noonan (Partner, Hawkins\Brown), Guy Ransom (Commercial Director, Finn Geotherm UK Ltd) #adaptivereuse #sustainableengineering #sustainablestructures #sustainablefacades #circulareconomy

At the conclusion of the 27th International PassivHaus Conference in Innsbruck, Austria - What was the main message being put forward? The building industry is in a unique position to make a huge difference to keeping us globally on track to meeting the 2015 Paris Agreement. We build building of all sorts, People live and work in these buildings and these buildings use energy to heat/ cool them to make them suitable for habitation. Currently building usage and construction consumes about 1/3 of the worlds energy. If we can design and build these buildings so that they are net zero - which can be done in any climate zone then we do this, it isn’t an option. More importantly the majority of the buildings that are used are existing building stock - these need to be retrofitted / renovated / repurposed so they aren’t wasting precious energy and resources and so they are actually healthy and comfortable to live in or work in. We need to be clever in what we do, choose the right materials to do it. A lot of what we need to do has already been worked out - we just need to collectively educate ourselves and implement the right measure so we can make a difference for our future generations. Most importantly this is what we need to do now, not in 5 years time. #27intphc #balmainEnerPHit #certifiedpassivehouse #certifiedpassivehousebuilder #balmainbuilder #builderbalmain #passivhaus #passivehouse #passivehousebuilder #passivehousesydney #passivehousebalmain #passivehouseannandale #hempcrete #hempcretebuilder #builderinnerwest #sustainablebuilder #masterbuilder #greenbuilder #rammedearth #sydneybuilder #passivesolar #birchgrovebuilder #solarenergy #solarpanels #heatpump #renovation #nontoxic #teslapowerwall #blowerdoortest #hrv

I will be at FOOTPRINT+ tomorrow. If anyone from my network is there and wants to talk about embodied carbon reduction in landscape design, let me know! #landscapearchitecture Planit

Retrofitting represents one of the best opportunities to improve the environment in our cities and involves modifications to existing commercial buildings that may improve #energyefficiency or decrease energy demand. There is not one solution to all retrofits, but not every #retrofit is so unique that design teams must start from scratch. As this article by Sto Corp.’s Karine Galla in Passive House Accelerator shows, many of the techniques and systems used to retrofit a building can be applied to future projects. https://lnkd.in/gDVf5YAi 

New EPD Alert 🚨🏢📄🍃 this time for our Altherma WS unit. Altherma WS is Daikin's internal Water-to-Water Heat Pump solution for large scale residential ambient loop schemes. We are proud to announce we can now provide Embodied Carbon data for this unit in the form of a full Environmental Product Declaration (EPD). With the quantity of Tall Buildings in the pipeline, applying heat pump technology in a larger scale application is crucial the decarbonisation of our residential sector. Reading the recent NLA Tall Buildings Survey. It's been interesting to see the changes over the years in the number of applications as well as public opinion of Tall Buildings. The planning system in 2023 saw; 67 - Tall buildings in the pipeline 47 - Applications 21 - Permissions 0 - Refused If you are working on a large residential project and would like a copy of our new EPD, please feel free to get in touch. https://lnkd.in/esnYJUh6