The growth of the Passive House standard in the U.S. has been slow, but it could still produce significant influence, according to a recent panel of industry experts.
That group is looking to expand the standard beyond single-family houses to projects like schools, hospitals and high-rise towers, according to a Construction Dive report. Today, there is roughly 475,000 sf of certified Passive House project square footage in the U.S., including 16 multifamily projects, seven commercial buildings, and one school, in addition to 111 single-family homes.
Passive House Institute U.S. (PHIUS) wants to expand acceptance of the standard in the commercial and institutional markets. As more buildings achieve certification, they provide proof-of-concept and data that can inform design decisions and influence new codes and regulations, and thereby create momentum for the standard.
Local governments will be able to collect the data from new Passive House buildings and help inform decision-makers in the built community about how the standard achieves results in sustainability. Optimistically, Passive House could thus have a larger influence than might be expected from just looking at the number of certifications.
Related Stories
Education Facilities | Jun 4, 2021
Three ProConnect events coming this fall: Sustainability (Nov 2-3), Education (Nov 16-17), Multifamily (Dec 12-14)
SGC Horizon ProConnect 2021 schedule for Education, Multifamily, Office, and Single Family events.
Sustainability | May 28, 2021
Nexii builds the first sustainably constructed Popeyes restaurant in Canada
The new restaurant was built in under two weeks.
High-rise Construction | May 27, 2021
The anti-high rise: Seattle's The Net by NBBJ
In this exclusive video interview for HorizonTV, Ryan Mullenix, Design Partner with NBBJ, talks with BD+C's John Caulfield about a new building in Seattle called The Net that promotes wellness and connectivity.
Wood | May 14, 2021
What's next for mass timber design?
An architect who has worked on some of the nation's largest and most significant mass timber construction projects shares his thoughts on the latest design trends and innovations in mass timber.
Sustainability | May 12, 2021
Climate modeling for a resilient business and future
This post explores changes that developers and their teams need to make to their risk and resilience strategies by climate modeling for climate change.
Sustainability | Apr 23, 2021
AIA honors exceptional designs with its COTE Top Ten Awards
Projects integrate high design with advanced performance in ten key areas.
Industry Research | Apr 9, 2021
BD+C exclusive research: What building owners want from AEC firms
BD+C’s first-ever owners’ survey finds them focused on improving buildings’ performance for higher investment returns.
Sustainability | Mar 9, 2021
First-of-its-kind Starbucks built in just six days
The store is set to open in Canada in mid-March.
Daylighting | Mar 7, 2021
Texas intermediate school lets the sun really shine in
Solatube tubular daylighting devices bring sunlight into the two-story commons/media space for 600 students in grades 3-5 at Sunnyvale Intermediate School.
