The thermal performance of a house is determined by the complex interaction of a variety of major influences. With higher performance being desired, and demanded, it becomes more important that an objective measure is used for an assessment to be meaningful.

Designers, project managers, installers and building consent officials exercising duty of care responsibilities would positively contribute to raising the bar on all passive fire protection installations in NZ.

How do I get my design to meet expectations of comfort?

When designing buildings for thermal performance, which criteria should dominate when it comes to the selection of building materials?

Fashions have changed and paint technology has improved; flat/matt sheen level paints are now being confidently used throughout homes, including in bathrooms and kitchens.

Getting layering right in New Zealand buildings for summer and winter.

The perceptions of project managers, quantity surveyors and passive fire installers when it comes to planning for fire stopping.

Should we be reviewing the natural ventilation aspects of the standard form of windows commonly used in our modern houses?

A dwelling should be considered as an integrated set of systems rather than a set of separate components.

We recently had occasion to be drawn into the realm of structural engineering with regard to concrete floor slab penetrations. The issue is all too common: no provision made for power or data cables (and other services) to pass through concrete floor slabs.