"Exciting" step towards retrofitting homes
LJMU’s “living labs” are poised to make a telling contribution to future energy efficiency in Britain’s housing market.
Teaming up with construction products giant Wienerberger, the School of Civil Engineering and Built Environment has created a testbed for new efficient technologies in three houses reflecting Britain’s housing-stock from the 1920s, 1970s and 2010s.
The houses, known as the ‘living labs’, have been fitted with a multitude of sensors which test the energy performance of the whole house as different ‘retrofit’ components are installed, such as heating, solar panels, insulation, tiles and a whole gamut of building materials.
Wienerberger and LJMU will be able to test any retrofit ‘component’ and have solid data as to how much it helps reduce energy consumption and improve home comfort, potentially creating new standards for the industry.
The ‘labs’ are already attracting attention from an industry under pressure to retrofit homes and meet net zero targets.
Malcolm Davies, the Welsh Government’s leader on retrofit and home energy, said, after touring the facility: “This is really exciting and helps show us a way forward. I would like to see it expanded.
“Whatever we build going forward, it has to be long-lasting.”
Researchers at LJMU have spent several months kitting out the ‘homes’ and will start tracking the data coming in at the start of June.
Dr Hu Du, Senior Lecturer in Building Services and Architectural Engineering who is leading LJMU’s research team said "The retrofit provided a unique chance to install sensors in previously inaccessible locations like inside walls, under PV panels, under roof tiles, and underground. LJMU researchers are eagerly anticipating the data gathered from these newly positioned sensors to inform future retrofit designs and optimise building operations."
PhD researcher Alex Pilkington added they weren’t leaving anything to chance as every part of the building played a part in energy efficiency.
Wienerberger’s Director of Commercial Propositions Manuela Fazzan said: ‘’Over half of UK homes have an Environmental Performance Certificate rating of ‘D’ or lower, often requiring significant upgrades in insulation, heating, and energy efficiency.”
The company has launched a series of packages offering holistic approaches to future-proofing buildings, called Renatus. The top-range Renatus retrofit would bring a home to a top A performance, approximate to net zero.
The firm and LJMU are planning a series of industry days where firms, housebuilders and government can visit to see for themselves the results of this data-led approach.
IMAGE: Malcolm Davies, of the Welsh government, researcher Alex Pilkington and Wienerberger’s Manuela Fazzan outside the labs as they near completion.
