Scaling Passive House: Big Buildings, Small Details

If Dustin Hoffman's young and confused character in 1967's The Graduate had been an aspiring architect, the advice he so famously received ("One word: Plastics.") would surely have been "Passive House." The advanced building standard continues to capture the hearts and minds of the NYC green building community, with 200 people jostling to hear Günter Lang from Austria in a presentation jointly sponsored by Urban Green, AIANY, and New York Passive House.

Lang channeled another famously brief meme multiple times during his talk: "Just do it." He presented slide after slide showing European Passive House examples from just about every building sector, including large housing projects, commercial offices, and schools. Both new and existing buildings have met the standard, and Lang says that in the Austrian province of Tyrol, over one quarter of next year's housing starts will be Passive House.

One of the most inspirational examples was a Passive House retrofit to a secondary school. By attaching preassembled panels to existing columns on the outside of the building, designers were able to create a new façade. This technique meant that onsite assembly was completed in just four days, according to Lang.

Read the full article at urbangreencouncil.org

Watch the full presentation Scaling Passive House: Big Buildings, Small Details - 3.19.2015.