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Hidden Heroes

Only a very small amount of metal was used in the #COP26House build, but the fixings supplied by timber building expert Rothoblaas were deliberately selected. As a company, Rothoblaas srl are putting emphasis not just on the design and quality of their fixings to build timber structures, but also ensuring they are developed for ‘reversability’. The #COP26House has been built in a[…]

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Infrared heating: the ideal solution for the COP26 House

Herschel Infrared White Panels used to heat COP26 House in Glasgow

Sam Abel, Marketing Manager at Herschel Infrared, explains why infrared heaters were the ideal choice of heating system for the COP26 House. The COP26 House, developed by Beyond Zero Homes, proves that sustainable and affordable buildings are achievable right now. The house design combines high thermal efficiency with the prerequisite that both capital costs and[…]

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The COP26 House – an embodied carbon exemplar

The numbers are in, and we couldn’t be happier. The whole life embodied carbon assessment shows that Beyond Zero Homes’ COP26 House beats the RIBA 2030 Challenge target by a substantial 22%. Here Daniel Doran from Circular Ecology presents the results. From its inception, one of the key aims of the COP 26 House project[…]

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A structure simple enough that school children could build it

image showing children constructing the timber frame of School House project in South London

One of the Peter Smith‘s priorities for the design of the COP26 House was that the house should be simple to build, using standard materials and skills readily available today. And an inspiration for this simplicity in build was the Roderick James Architects’  School House project – a structure simple enough that school children can build it. About the[…]

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Heat Recovery Ventilation – for health of environment and people

Stefan Huber, Director of Beyond Zero Homes member Paul Heat Recovery, describes how MVHR systems contributes to reducing energy consumption in homes as well as improving air quality Scotland has ambitious targets: the nation wants to be net zero carbon by 2045. This seems a long way off, but given the fact that our current[…]

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The advantages of timber in construction: local materials

Stats about the contribution forestry makes to Scotland's economy

In the fourth and final blog in our series about the benefits of timber in construction, we focus on the importance of using locally sourced materials, and the need to increase the amount of locally grown timber products. In recent months we have all been impacted in one way or another by supply shortages, whether[…]

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The advantages of timber: construction method

diagram showing timber frame of COP26 House

This is the second in a series of articles, written by members of the Beyond Zero Carbon team from STEICO, BSW, MEDITE SMARTPLY and National Timber Group, focusing on the advantages of timber for building. Here the team consider the benefits of timber in the construction itself. In our last blog, we discussed the environmental[…]

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The advantages of timber in construction: environment

stacked pile of wooden logs

This is the first in a series of articles, written by members of the Beyond Zero Carbon team from STEICO, BSW, MEDITE SMARTPLY and National Timber Group, focusing on the advantages of timber in construction. Here the team consider the benefits of timber to the wider environment. If you have ever seen an HGV hurtling[…]

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The COP26 House build has begun!

Exciting times: last week our zero carbon COP26 House build began on site on the Broomlielaw in central Glasgow. Situated just east of the Kingston Bridge, the house is located within a short walk of Glasgow Central Station in one direction and the SEC in the other direction, where the COP26 conference will be held.[…]

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Carbon Measurement of the COP26 House

by Daniel Doran, Craig Jones and Will Garner, Circular Ecology The building, operation and maintenance of buildings accounts for 39% of total global carbon emissions. In the UK 28% of emissions relates to domestic buildings alone. Accurate measurement of carbon impact is a vital component in all building developments, and Beyond Zero Homes are therefore[…]

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The inspiration for the design of the COP26 House

The COP26 House was conceived and designed by Peter Smith, Architect and Passivhaus Designer at Roderick James Architects (RJA). The house is a culmination of many projects and experiences that Peter has had over his career: bringing together design and materials in a way that showcases that low carbon housing, made from ecologically responsible materials,[…]