http://beacon/index.php en andreab@beaconpathway.co.nz Copyright 2010 2010-06-18T00:37:59+12:00 http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/launched_the_neighbourhood_sustainability_framework_and_assessment_kit/ http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/launched_the_neighbourhood_sustainability_framework_and_assessment_kit/#When:23:37:59Z Beacon’s Neighbourhood team has just launched the culmination of their research: a Neighbourhood Sustainability Framework and Assessment Kit. This provides a framework for people and organisations wanting to improve the sustainability of neighbourhoods that they are planning, retrofitting and managing. It takes into account the environmental, social, behavioural and economic elements of neighbourhoods, and recognises that not only are neighbourhoods dynamic, they reflect the result of multiple decisions made by a range of stakeholders at different times.  The Kit provides the tools to both assess neighbourhoods and to drive conversations on specific aspects of neighbourhood level sustainability in order to inform practical decision making. You will find the Neighbourhood Sustainability Framework and Assessment Kit useful if you are a: developer local authority planner, engineer, policy maker or community developer designer planner neighbourhood manager, for example, with Housing New Zealand Corporation or a housing trust   Download your free copy of the Neighbourhood Sustainability Framework and Assessment Kit here.   The technical reports detailing the development of the NSF and Kit are also available.  Visit the Reports and Presentations - Neighbourhoods page. 2010-06-17T23:37:59+12:00 http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/2010_research_symposia_-_presentations_available_now/ http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/2010_research_symposia_-_presentations_available_now/#When:01:55:52Z As Beacon’s research contract with the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology draws to a close, we have taken the opportunity to update stakeholders on progress in some key research projects.  Three research symposia were held in Wellington, Christchurch and Auckland to share what we’ve learned. These include: The final results from the Rotorua NOW Home®, a project which told us a lot about what design compromises can and cannot be made to still get a high-performing home. The results from the large scale HomeSmart Renovation project.  Covering 530 homes, this has provided a wealth of data about what renovations homeowners prioritise given extensive information, and how well their homes perform before and after. The value of water efficiency measures to councils, and the relationship between water and energy in water treatment and supply. How to get sustainable neighbourhoods - Beacon’s Neighbourhood Sustainability Framework and the new assessment kit. Progess toward the new Residential Rating Tool Presentations from these three symposia are available here. 2010-06-15T01:55:52+12:00 http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/sb10_sustainable_building_conference_26-28_may._register_now/ http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/sb10_sustainable_building_conference_26-28_may._register_now/#When:08:06:37Z The New Zealand Sustainable Building Conference - (SB10 NZ) will bring together a wide range of industry stakeholders to focus on the issue of sustainable building in the New Zealand environment. Following on from the successful SB07 held in Auckland 2007, the conference will bring together local and international speakers to share their knowledge and insights on innovative, high performance and low impact approaches to developing, maintaining and retrofitting the built environment for sustainability. The conference spans policy, planning and design, through to construction, maintenance, refurbishment, reuse or deconstruction. The focus will be the future of New Zealand’s built environment and how to manage transform the building sector. SB10 is one of a number of regional conferences being held across the globe in the lead up to SB11 in London. SB10 is held under the auspices of International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction (CIB), the International Initiative for a Sustainable Built Environment (iiSBE) and the Division of Technology, Industry and Economics (DTIE) of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The Conference is being held 26th - 28th May 2010 at Te Papa, Wellington. For more information, visit http://www.sb10.org.nz 2010-05-02T08:06:37+12:00 http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/improved_access_to_housing_research_for_new_zealand/ http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/improved_access_to_housing_research_for_new_zealand/#When:08:03:01Z A joint venture between Government agencies and other organisations has the objective of making all housing research produced in New Zealand available through a single website portal. Housing Research for New Zealand already links to more than 1000 research papers on all aspects of housing research, and thousands more are expected to be added in the next 12 months. The Centre for Housing Research Aotearoa New Zealand (CHRANZ) has led the creation of this new website, with support from DigitalNZ. Based in the National Library of New Zealand, DigitalNZ helps to make New Zealand digital content easy to find, share and use. This includes content from government departments, publicly-funded organisations, the private sector, and community groups.  DigitalNZ’s existing technology has allowed CHRANZ to partner with other housing researchers to improve access to highly topical material used for the development of Government policy. New Zealand’s housing needs are complex and changing.  Few challenges are more important for the country than providing, affordable,  good quality accommodation and sustainable urban environments. For this reason a wide range of central and local Government agencies, not-for-profit organisations and others need all the best information available as the basis for their policy-making, planning and implementation around housing and urban development. A large number initiate their own research while, at the same time, continuously seeking to stay abreast of material produced by others.   An ongoing difficulty is the diversity of organisations and sources, and knowing where to look and how to keep informed of new reports. Housing Research for New Zealand presently links to the websites and other sources of nine housing research organisations, including Beacon, as well as universities and tertiary institutes.  Key features are; Single search access to research items from across New Zealand organisations. Links to full documents in context on the host organisation’s website  Diverse sources of information, including New Zealand universities; independent research companies; and Government departments   2010-05-02T08:03:01+12:00 http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/What_do_you_know_about_photovoltaics_Try_this_survey/ http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/What_do_you_know_about_photovoltaics_Try_this_survey/#When:03:14:21Z How much demand for photovoltaics is there in New Zealand?  How much do you know about using photovoltaics to generate power?  Would you try it? As part of his MBA studies at the Auckland University Business School, Ian Mather is conducting research in order to assess the demand potential for domestic photovoltaic power generation in New Zealand. Increasing electricity consumption in New Zealand is expected to continue well into the future. This places pressure on our fossil fuel resources, our generation capacity and also our geothermal reserves. We are already experiencing the associated electricity price increases. This situation demands a greater emphasis on the development and implementation of sustainable, cost effective electricity generation technologies. Photovoltaics may be the answer.  PV cells convert sunlight into usable domestic solar electricity. It is seen as sustainable; has very low environmental impact; and is cost effective given sufficient demand. Ian’s survey is targeting homeowners in the Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch regions.  He would greatly appreciate about five to ten minutes of your time to complete the survey. http://FreeOnlineSurveys.com/rendersurvey.asp?sid=637cm54pm9tl56r653194 2009-11-19T03:14:21+12:00 http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/Visit_the_NZ_Housing_Foundation_HomeSmart_Home/ http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/Visit_the_NZ_Housing_Foundation_HomeSmart_Home/#When:22:53:24Z The New Zealand Housing Foundation is excited to let you know that their HomeSmart Home is nearing completion.   In conjunction with Beacon, they are holding an ‘Open Week’ before the family moves in, during which time you are invited to come and have a look around this wonderful new home in their West Coast Road development.   Date:                  Thursday 27th August-Wednesday 2nd September 2009 Time:         10.30am - 2.30pm every day Address:          16 Foundation Place, Glen Eden (cnr Titch Place and Foundation Place)   Read more about the first HomeSmart Home 2009-08-16T22:53:24+12:00 http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/The_first_step_toward_rating_new_and_existing_homes/ http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/The_first_step_toward_rating_new_and_existing_homes/#When:03:44:49Z Industry-wide agreement on the need for action to address New Zealand’s cold, damp and unhealthy homes has led to a collaborative effort to develop a rating tool for new and existing homes. A single rating tool was seen as a critical foundation to drive change with its aim to be a simple, easily understood web-based interface for consumers. It would combine a ‘star’ rating and an annual estimate cost of operating for energy, water, etc. for a home with its current features, in order to achieve the WHO standard of an 18°C average indoor temperature. Working together, New Zealand Green Building Council, BRANZ and Beacon Pathway have taken the first step toward the development of a single rating tool.  The team have just released a report, Development of a Single Residential Rating Tool for New Zealand, which scopes why New Zealand needs a rating tool, what criteria it could include, options to ensure wide scale efficient delivery, and most importantly how this could help improve the quality and performance of New Zealand housing stock while setting a best practice benchmark for new housing.   Download Development of a Single Residential Rating Tool for New Zealand (1.5MB PDF) This foundation work has identified the need for a single rating tool that rates both new and existing homes and which: Facilitates improvement of existing stock by clearly delivering useful retrofit priorities to consumers, and aligning with the Government’s home insulation fund and other relevant programmes. Encourages action by providing consumers with information on the choices or actions they can take and the estimated costs and benefits of these actions. Provides achievable and consistent advice and standards over time that enables the building and construction industry to produce, install and maintain solutions that deliver real results for homeowners and occupiers. Enables the use of an online web-based tool that generates information on the expected building performance based on data about the house (as entered online by the user). Is a free or low-cost self-assessment so that acts as a “one-stop-shop” experience for consumers (i.e. connects the user to additional information and market solutions). Is objective and technically robust, while being easy to use. A draft rating tool framework created by a joint industry/government Technical Working Group is included. 2009-06-30T03:44:49+12:00 http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/Home_performance_rating_in_development/ http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/Home_performance_rating_in_development/#When:01:40:52Z Work is now underway to develop a single rating tool to assess the comfort and performance of New Zealand’s new and existing homes. A partnership has been formed between the New Zealand Green Building Council (NZGBC), BRANZ and Beacon Pathway to develop a system that will assess the performance of our homes, provide information for homeowners considering improvements to their home, and provide a performance scale that creates value around warm, healthy and efficient homes. This industry initiative aligns with Government activities to form a public/private sector partnership to create long-term value for all New Zealanders. A rating will help owners compare new and existing homes on the basis of comfort and performance, in addition to the location, size or aesthetic qualities of the home.  Homeowners renovating to make their home warmer, drier, or more energy efficient will be able to link these improvements to the capital value of their property.   Home Performance Rating Tool in Summary The rating tool will: enable homeowners to compare the costs of improving home performance through free or low cost assessments based on data about the house.  A web-based tool will generate information on the expected performance of the home based on data provided. reward investment in the performance of a home with a rating which reflects its increased value. address the whole building envelope and assess a home’s performance, including energy, water, health and comfort, and materials used. provide a framework to help deliver Government housing initiatives such as the home insulation fund provide achievable and consistent advice on standards over time that enable the building and construction industry to produce, install and maintain solutions that deliver real results for homeowners and occupiers. Overseas research shows homes with performance ratings sell and rent faster, for higher prices than non-rated homes.   UK, Europe and North America have developed similar rating tools, such as LEED for Homes in the USA and Canada (http://www.usgbc.org/leed/homes ) and the Code for Sustainable Homes in the UK (http://www.communities.gov.uk/thecode )   Development of the tool A Technical Working Group is determining the basis for the technical detail of the tool. It will present a detailed scoping document and draft framework to a wiser stakeholder group in July.  If you would like to attend this briefing, please contact residential@nzgbc.org.nz 2009-06-02T01:40:52+12:00 http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/Sharing_our_research_free_council_workshops/ http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/Sharing_our_research_free_council_workshops/#When:23:38:43Z Building Sustainable Homes:What Local Government Can Do Beacon has recently completed a range of research either targeted at, or supporting, local government encouragement of sustainable building and renovation.    Beacon Pathway’s research suggests that people would find it easier to build and retrofit their homes sustainably if council policies, plans and processes were more supportive of sustainable design. From our discussions with council officers, we know that councils are interested in promoting more sustainable housing choices, but that they are working with limited resources and some uncertainty as to what they can do.  Recent research of particular use to councils includes: Energy research into various house types, their prevalence around New Zealand and the best retrofit options to improve their performance Energy research into the best renewable energy options around New Zealand Research into water demand management and a framework to support councils to decide on the best water policies for them A resource manual to support local government in encouraging sustainable building and renovation What the workshop will cover As part of this workshop, we will: Introduce the contents of Beacon’s new publication Building Sustainable Homes: a Resource Manual for Local Government. Share critical findings from Beacon’s retrofit and new-build research programmes. Equip officers with information about how homes can be better designed for energy, water, indoor environment quality and waste. Outline the range of regulatory and non-regulatory policy tools available to councils to promote more sustainable building in their districts. Identify some simple priority actions that could be undertaken across New Zealand, and in locally-specific contexts. Who will be interested? The workshop is designed for a broad range of council officers, and we would like to invite you to assemble a small team to attend from across different council units. We would particularly recommend it for: Staff involved in assessing resource and building consent applications, including planners, engineers, building compliance officers Forward planners (e.g. those involved in writing District Plan provisions) Asset managers with responsibility for council housing stock Sustainability advisors  Dates: Christchurch, 11 June Wellington, 19 June Rotorua, July (tbc) Auckland, August (tbc) Where to book Spaces are limited. Please contact Kim Hinton to register your interest:  kimh@beaconpathway.co.nz  tel: 09 522 5170 2009-05-13T23:38:43+12:00 http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/Aprils_Facing_offers_neighbourhood_survey_data/ http://beaconpathway.co.nz/index.php/news/article/Aprils_Facing_offers_neighbourhood_survey_data/#When:23:38:34Z Read the latest Beacon reseach in April’s Facing: Neighbourhood survey data is available for interested stakeholders in territorial authorities and neighbourhood planning Large scale renovation creates jobs - Beacon’s briefing for the Job Summit House types and prevalence in New Zealand - research identifies the group of homes easiest and most cost-effective to retrofit Local government workshops are being held to share Beacon’s research with councils including a Resource Manual for Local Government Progress on the HomeSmart Renovations project What did the Papakowhai Renovation project teach us?  The final results are in. Click here to download 2009-05-13T23:38:34+12:00