Offsite2007

I have a meeting planned down at the BRE in a week or so and hope, as part of the visit to view the buildings erected as part of the Offsite 2007 event. (now closed, but the website contains much useful information)
As we lead up to the LCBPC Innovation event on the 5th July, its [...]

Google to Recharge a Car, Recharge the Grid, Recharge the Planet?

And you thought Google was just a search engine?  Take a look at Google’s Climate Change Programe

 

Slow Home Futures

In comparison to the news that the UK housing sector is to be invetsigated, and with the media quick to pick up on the numbers that only 3 in 4 (76%) of people buying new homes are satisfied with quality, I was intrigued to get news from the USA on the emerging Slow Homes Movement.
This [...]

Low-Carbon Building Accelerator

Noticed this on the Carbon Trust website recently:
The Low-Carbon Building Accelerator seeks to demonstrate that major refurbishments of non-residential buildings can be completed in both a low-carbon and a cost-effective manner. It involves the Carbon Trust’s specialist consultants working with a range of building projects in the retail, hospitality, government and education sectors. The specialist [...]

Schools rebuild project ‘ignores green initiative’

The Sunday Times yesterday reported that the BSF programme is missing a big opportunity to promote sustainable building methods.
A report from the education and skills select committee, headed by Labour MP Barry Sheerman, will slam the programme for missing a big opportunity to promote sustainable building methods.
About £150m has been set aside to improve environmental [...]

Construction Carbon Calculator

Update:  see latest post Construction Carbon Calculator - no more excuses for best yet calculator 
Zero Champion in a recent post poses the question ‘How the hell do we measure our carbon footprint‘?
Businesses need a single, unified standard for displaying the carbon impact of their activities to ensure companies can see a visible competitive advantage to [...]

Net Waste Method

As reported on today’s Contract Journal website, WRAP has published plans for a new standard to measure waste neutrality.  Further details and a pdf brochure can be downloaded from the WRAP web site Net Waste Method page.
In simple terms, WRAP considers ‘waste neutral’ to be where the value of construction materials wasted is matched [...]

Hidden Innovation

NESTA (see below) have published their Hidden Innovation report which looks at innovation systems of six sectors that are seen as having low levels of innovation: oil production, retail banking, construction, legal aid services, education and the rehabilitation of offenders.
It examines whether these sectors are truly lacking in innovation, or whether traditional measures of innovation [...]

Free Innovation Event - be seen to be innovative

Do you want to learn more about accessing innovation?
Attend the LBPC Innovation Event on 5th July at UClan
Do you want to tell the world about your innovative product or service?
Exhibit  at the LBPC Innovation Event on 5th July at UClan
Details and flyers on the Events Page. Be there and be seen to be innovative. [...]

Rubble Trouble

The following was noticed from UK Green Building Council
50%
Percentage of UK greenhouse gas emissions from running buildings…
30%
…of those emissions could be cut by cheap and simple measures
10%
Percentage of UK emissions coming from producing building materials…
20% …of those materials on every new building ends up in a skip…
88
…producing in a year enough waste to build 88 [...]