John Baguley, Director of Technical, Risk and Compliance at Countrywide Surveying Services joined us to talk about how sustainability in the built environment is being affected by market forces, and how energy efficiency is likely to impact market conditions. A vastly experienced professional who has seen all sides of the industry his experience affords him a different perspective on all the usual angles. There are no simple solutions but we discussed how energy efficiency is affecting property ...
Apr 17, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 94
Events conspired against us this week and we didn't manage to get a recording together. Sorry. In lieu of having something ready for you, we decided that we'd recommend some of the things that we're listening to. These are all personal recommendations, some related to our subjects, some not. They're all worth a listen though. ------------------------------------------------- The Blindboy Podcast - Topographica Hibernica Web / Apple / Spotify link to episode --------------------------------------...
Apr 10, 2023•6 min•Ep. 93
This week we're with Marion Baeli , an architect who is a retrofit pioneer, a partner at PDP London, a board member of the Passive House Trust, and the author of seminal retrofit-related text Residential Retrofit: 20 Case Studies . Some time ago we saw her posting about the impact DPEs are having on the property market in France and we realised that we had to have her on. We talk about the imminent reprise of her book, a look back at ten of those case studies and the lessons learned since (that'...
Apr 03, 2023•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 92
In this episode, we had the pleasure of Dr. Barry McCarron 's company, from his car, during a break in the conference he was attending. If you’re looking for an inspiring journey into academia and leadership in low-energy building, Barry’s story has you covered. We also talk about how passive house certification appears to mitigate risk from radon, the impact of further education (as opposed to academia), and how proper systems design is essential to making even passive houses work properly. Bar...
Mar 27, 2023•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 91
Our guest on this episode is Helena Fitzgerald , a passive house designer, and architect whose experience of building her own passive house led her to move beyond architecture. Taking a stance on passive house - as an attempt to be green - prompted self-reflection in Helena, which took her career off on what might seem a wild tangent. Now a research fellow in the Department of Economics at the University of Limerick, Helena's new direction is focused on equitable, community-centric, scalable sus...
Mar 21, 2023•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 90
This week we’re talking space heating, with John Morehead of Wain Morehead Architects . Last week Jeff had hoped to talk about the absurd space heating assumptions in the standardised calculations that go into things like EPCs and BERs, so we decided to dedicate this week's episode to it. Jeff's been keen to get John on for a while, so it seemed like a prim opportunity to tempt him to join us, and it worked. That said, we didn't talk much about those assumptions and, unexpectedly, we started wit...
Mar 14, 2023•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 89
Here we go, part two of last week's recording with returning guests, Bill Bordass and Adrian Leaman. This continues our response to that Times article that was doing the rounds last week , now looking at what we should be doing, in lieu of appropriate and demanding guidance from the institutions that dictate terms. We pick up where we left off. Enjoy. Notes from the episode The Usable Buildings website The article that sparked the episode - EPCs are a national scandal, from The Times Newly Resto...
Mar 09, 2023•55 min•Ep. 88
This week we've got a two-parter for you with returning guests, Bill Bordass and Adrian Leaman. At first, we thought we'd do an episode in response to that Times article that was doing the rounds last week , and we did. It just didn't turn out as we expected. At the last minute, we asked Bill Bordass and Adrian Leaman if they'd like to join us. Jeff had remembered just how deeply those guys had been involved in the subject of energy performance assessment, so we asked them, they were free, and w...
Mar 07, 2023•55 min•Ep. 87
With the EU closing in on a major revision to perhaps the single most important legislative driver for decarbonisation of buildings, the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), we spoke to the architect of the proposed changes, Ciarán Cuffe , who gave us some fascinating insights. It was a chance to talk about thinking big and the challenges associated with instituting large-scale change. A veritable sustainability, built environment, and political polymath, Ciarán is the Green Party M...
Feb 28, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 86
All new homes in Scotland are set to be built to a Scottish equivalent of the passive house standard, under plans announced by the government recently. But at what cost? A recent article in Project Scotland, while describing the aim of the policy as “admirable”, warned that it will “undoubtedly lead, at least in the short to medium term, to greater expense in a construction industry already suffering from spiraling costs and, ultimately, the price of housing rising.” But does this concern stand ...
Feb 21, 2023•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 85
We sat down with Ele George and Emily Braham to talk about all things Energiesprong and how they're making things happen for other people in the retrofit industry. They don't have all the answers, but they're determinedly seeking them with the right questions. Energiesprong UK is a project that's finding ways to mitigate the myriad barriers to improving people's homes, reducing maintenance costs, and developing robust supply chains. From finance to manufacturing, managing relationship-between te...
Feb 14, 2023•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 84
For almost two decades transatlantic commentator Lloyd Alter has been the rarest of creatures: a popular writer of insightful articles about green building, mainly via the pioneering green living website Treehugger.com . The day before our interview, Lloyd and the rest of the editorial team at Treehugger were told to clear their desks, due to a change in business model that focused more on search engine algorithms, and less on the kind of nuanced, considered pieces that have made Lloyd so renown...
Feb 07, 2023•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 83
We like Kate Simpson , a doctor and a Research Associate at the School of Design Engineering, Imperial College London. It was a bit of a weird episode where the conversation didn't really go to plan and, at times, Jeff found himself being interviewed by our guest. It was good though. From a researcher's perspective, we discussed what motivates retrofit consumers and suppliers, as well as the potential for and nature of retrofit one-stop shops. Notes from the episode Michael Gove dancing That rhi...
Jan 31, 2023•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 82
Insidious misconceptions, false myths, and the lazy thinking pervades the green building sector, we're not happy about it, and nor are the authors of 'Building for 2050 Low cost, low carbon homes'. This is a recently published BEIS research paper about how low carbon construction is held back by a false understanding of what it costs, how hard it is, and what its users actually think about living with it. Alison Crompton ( AECOM ) and Tom Dollard ( Pollard Thomas Edwards ) were very generous wit...
Jan 24, 2023•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 81
Today we saw a LinkedIn post today that Dan wanted Jeff to explain to him; at the heart of it was an image of a retrofit job that looked lacking. Sadly, the LinkedIn post came down but here's the article it presented . It'll make more sense if you take a look too but it's not absolutely essential, you'll get the gist without it. Reading through the post's comments Dan didn't know what to make of it, so he ask Jeff to tell him what he was looking at and to try and school him a little. We also too...
Jan 21, 2023•35 min•Ep. 80
We had a contentious discussion last Friday about hybrid heating systems, a transition technology that could play a role in the decarbonisation of home heating. Stephen Kelly of OYA Energy joined us for a grilling from a very skeptical Jeff, to make his case for the use of heat pumps alongside legacy gas boilers. It's important to note that this is intended as a transition technology, not an ultimate end. Also, we do not discuss hydrogen as a hybrid heating solution, for obvious reasons. **SOME ...
Jan 17, 2023•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 79
It's all about how 'incompetence still reigns supreme' as we meander recklessly from GDPR, to jaywalking, before getting into the substance of the podcast. Mainly, we discuss DPE certification (the French EPC) and some appalling advice that was sourced by the French version of Which? magazine, Que Choisir, in an article about shopping around for your DPE. We also talked about EPCs, BERs, and a little bit about ESG (the post-punk band as well as the 'ethical' the value metrics). Some references f...
Jan 10, 2023•1 hr 22 min•Ep. 78
We'd arranged to have a post-Christmas catch-up about a few things and Alex suggested people might be interested in hearing about the genesis of Passive House Plus and its progenitor, Construct Ireland magazine, and the changes we've seen throughout the green building industry across those 20 years. First off, we had a post-Christmas catch-up to find out about Jeff's family's developing taste for seagull and our various breaks. If you want to skip that chatter entirely feel free to jump forward ...
Jan 03, 2023•1 hr 19 min•Ep. 77
On the night before, the night before, Christmas, we spent the morning with Ross Cremin a QS with a lot of experience in passive house building [I know what I wrote – Dan]. Broadly, we talked about what it's like to live in a Passivhaus building, eating seagulls in celebration of Christ, heating homes, and all the other usual things. It's worth highlighting that Jeff suggested we speak with Ross apropos of an anecdote he drew from in the Passive House Plus feature on Ross's house and in Jeff's '...
Dec 26, 2022•53 min•Ep. 76
We spent a little time with Stewart Little , a former architect who's been working to support energy efficiency and retrofit in the built environment for more than 20 years. With IRT Surveys he has led a business that uses thermal imaging to highlight energy saving issues in the built environment and an online platform that uses property data that shows its users how to save energy and access funding. Stewart was excellent value, with plenty to offer from years of experience and his Rockstar-rel...
Dec 20, 2022•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 75
This week we're with Ryan Philp from heat pump manufacturer Daikin who caught our attention thanks to his article titled Heat Pumps Are Not The Answer . In truth, he is a firm believer in heat pumps, just not heat pumps as a 'magic bullet'. So, we talked about that a lot, as well as efficiencies, embodied carbon, and heat networks. You also get to hear four white men talk about diversity issues. Some references from the show Ryan's article, Heat Pumps Are Not The Answer The Heat Pump Association...
Dec 13, 2022•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 74
We were delighted to be able to have an early-doors chat with Architectural Manager and incoming RIBA president Muyiwa Oki . As one might expect, it was very architecture heavy: we talked about the impact of architecture on all of the things we usually talk about, as well as the impact he is going to have on architecture. He's a fella with a lot of great ideas, so we're really looking forward to seeing how this plays out. (Also, new theme just dropped. We've moved on from the stock music to some...
Dec 06, 2022•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 73
Back in the summer Glasgow-based architect Chris Stewart became the new President of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS) , so a chat with him was right up our street. He has long been a strong advocate for the incorporation of sustainability into architectural practice and education, so when Sara found herself on a tour of Shetland in his company she seized an opportunity to book him for the show. As an individual with a strong track record in ecological design for the built...
Nov 29, 2022•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 72
In our last episode from BE-ST Fest 2022 Alex and Eddie McAvinchey (Scottish National Investment Bank) explore the funding stages available to companies, from concept to commercial scale, as well as the role of the Scottish National Investment Bank in supporting innovative supply chain companies, housing projects, heat networks, and more. ICYMI - BE-ST Fest 2022 was a day of inspiring speakers, expos, demos, workshops, and other activities, aimed at promoting and advancing our journey to a zero-...
Nov 23, 2022•26 min•Ep. 71
In episode four of our mini-series, the ZAP team and Christina Gaiger discuss the need for a shift in perception within the industry of the domestic market and how it must become more accessible in order to achieve net zero. ICYMI - BE-ST Fest 2022 was a day of inspiring speakers, expos, demos, workshops, and other activities, aimed at promoting and advancing our journey to a zero-carbon built environment. Some references from the show Christina Gaiger BE-ST Fest 2022 Useable buildings.org **SOM...
Nov 22, 2022•28 min•Ep. 70
Episode three of our mini-series from BE-ST Fest 2022, where we spoke with Jennifer Phin, MD of energy-efficiency contractor A.C. Whyte & Co. Following her appearance on the BE connected panel discussion, she shared more of her experiences of her leading a retrofit business in a rapidly changing environment. ICYMI - BE-ST Fest 2022 was a day of inspiring speakers, expos, demos, workshops, and other activities, aimed at promoting and advancing our journey to a zero-carbon built environment. S...
Nov 15, 2022•18 min•Ep. 69
In ep two of our mini-series from BE-ST Fest 2022, fresh from the BE Inspired panel, we spoke with Ele George from Elevate, Catherine Cosgrove chair of the Scottish Ecological Design Association (SEDA), Quam Temidayo from Microsoft, and Jeff Colley . Representing different facets of the industry, we explored some less commonly discussed retrofit topics (for this podcast at least), such as the need for more re-use in retrofit, how looking at the health of occupants is a way you get motivate chang...
Nov 09, 2022•22 min•Ep. 68
In this first BE-ST Fest 22 interview we spoke with Chris Stark, CEO of the Climate Change Committee (or Committee on Climate change, both names appear to be out there), and returning guest Stephen Good, CEO of BE-ST to discuss the journey to net zero as well as touching upon the BE-ST Fest Summit itself. Chris was there to give the opening keynote address, discussing the role of the built environment in addressing climate change. After the main event he and Stephen offered us a few more of thei...
Nov 01, 2022•31 min•Ep. 67
Last week, we went to BE-ST Fest 2022, we've definitely mentioned it before. We mention it again because while we were there we took an opportunity to catch up with some of the speakers and some friends of the show. So, we have a little episode with Sara, Alex, and Jeff to set the scene and introduce the series, as well as offering a little of their experiences having been there as host, panelist, and interviewer. In this friendly natter we also discussed lighter topics including: Did Jeff waffl...
Nov 01, 2022•12 min•Ep. 66
We caught up with friend of the show, Robbie McGrath , Head of Sustainability at D/RES Properties in Ireland. He's a mechanical engineer who meandered his way into sustainability, working as a sustainability consultant with corporate asset managers in the nordics and (bizarrely,) the British Embassy in Finland. We talked about loads of stuff. He's really interesting. Some of the references from the show Silken Park, Ireland's largest commercial Passivhaus development, as featured in Passive Hous...
Oct 25, 2022•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 65
