Re: Re: Any experience I should look for for energy efficiency specification?

Its a terrible indictment of the architecture profession that the vast bulk of its members have little understanding of low energy building and materials science. Recently on the radio a spokeperson for the RIAI didn’t even know what a passive house was. The 2010 Part L and 2012 water framework directive’s water standards will require skills that architects simply don’t possess at the moment.Can they calculate thermal bridges, can they design to reduce heat load sufficiently to removethe need for a boiler. Easca and cultivate.ie are providing courses but nothing from the RIAI. The worthwhile ‘see the ligt conference’ should tour the country and be free for Architects. With improved insulation levels and airtightness, building designers need to be certain of the result of their specification on indoor air quality and moisture. When/if we start building again will most architects be obsolete, its a great opportunity for out of work architects to train up in Building Biology/ Building Physics. Architectural Technologists will be extinct in a couple of years, surely they could be retrained as Building technologists.