From the Construct Ireland archives

An indepth look at the forthcoming Directive on the Energy Performance of Buildings by Jeff Colley.

An ambitious new community initiative aims to run Clonakilty on 100% renewable energy — and with similar projects sprouting up across Ireland and Europe, it offers one local example of how our Energise Ireland campaign can achieve its primary goal: weaning Ireland off fossil fuels and on to green energy.

In the hands of the right architect, meeting the passive house standard needn’t involve compromising on design. Construct Ireland visited a recently certified passive house which shows that a seamless low energy architecture is possible

Much hope has been pinned on the development of new technologies for sinking carbon and generating low impact energy. Richard Douthwaite reveals the major contribution that could be offered by something very old; a soil type that has been in use for 6,000 years.

Passive houses have long been considered the ultimate in low energy buildings. So when it comes to BERs, why don’t they always get a straight A? Lenny Antonelli investigates.

Ireland's first passive house development emerged as the big winner at the inaugural Isover Energy Efficiency Awards in February. We look at the winner and other finalists

The HARP database allows Building Energy Rating assessors to enter real performance data for heating appliances when calculating Building Energy Ratings rather than low default scores - but few renewable appliances are listed, and the industry appears confused and deterred by the application process. Lenny Antonelli investigates.

In the aftermath of our recent awareness raising, Construct Ireland began to research what measures the Irish government was taking to prepare for the Energy directive, and how this compared with views from other EU member states, an investigation that is revealing startling results. Jeff Colley reports.

 
A framework for strategic sustainability is essential if we’re serious about greening the Irish built environment.
According to green architect Pat Barry, we should look no further than The Natural Step.

In 2005 Construct Ireland profiled the timber frame extension to Hannah and Martin Naughton’s Meath cottage. Five years later we’re returning to profile the upgrade of the original bungalow — a renovation that demonstrates how to detail dry lining without running the risk of mould growth