Our passion is "high-performance, low impact, elegant design". The Passive House standard is a proven method for achieving construction quality and low-energy design, and the benefits of good ventilation, low energy bills, high comfort levels, and the avoidance of overheating risks, all make Passive House an attractive target for new homes.
This is why Josh has spent the last year training to become a Certified Passive House designer; to ensure our buildings are exactly what they intend to be, and to demonstrate our commitment to energy efficiency, fuel poverty reduction and to taking action on climate change.
The Passive House concept was developed in Germany in the early 1990s by Professors Bo Adamson and Wolfgang Feist who set up an independent research organisation called the Passive House Institute (PHI). The calculations procedure has evolved over the years, and has become the only internationally recognised, performance-based energy standard in construction. The Institute acts as an independent testing and certification centre for buildings and building components, as well as upholding of the strict quality requirements set by the Passive House Standard through the professional certifications it offers worldwide.
There are two routes to becoming a certified Passive House designer: either passing an exam; or being lead consultant on a certified Passive House building and writing a report. Josh achieved certification by designing and reporting on the Hazel Tree Passive House project, which was certified a Passive House in July 2023. You can see the listing on the Passive House Database here.
Josh's background in Architecture and Environmental Engineering placed him in a good position to learn the methodology on his own. He found the process beautifully in-depth and rigorous. The energy balance of the proposed building must be verified using the Passive House Planning Package (PHPP), and the methodology requires a front-loaded design process that is interested in the detail.
Get in touch if you would like to know more about the Passive House Standard, how it influences the design and process, and whether it is the right target for your project. We hope that all projects will aim for this standard sooner rather than later!