Property
Published: July 31, 2024 | Updated: 31st July 2024
Barratt Developments’ Southampton division recently welcomed councillors and business leaders to Energy House 2.0, a pioneering project designed to demonstrate the effects of climate change on the built environment.
Notable attendees included Councillor John Savage from Southampton City Council, Leigh-Sara Timberlake, Group CEO of Business South, Kate Peace, Head of Strategy at Business South, Alex Rennie, former leader of Havant Borough Council, and Councillor Martin Lury, Leader of Arun District Council.
The event took place at Energy House 2.0, a £16 million collaboration between Barratt Developments, Bellway Homes, Saint-Gobain, and the University of Salford.
Energy House 2.0 features two detached houses within climate chambers that replicate temperatures from -20°C to +40°C and can simulate extreme weather conditions such as hurricanes, heavy rain, and snow.
The project builds on Barratt’s first net zero home, ‘Zed House,’ to explore how future homes can withstand severe weather.
Oliver Novakovic, Technical and Innovation Director at Barratt Developments, highlighted the company’s efforts in working with innovative firms to introduce sustainable technologies.
He said: “At Barratt, we do more than build modern homes and beautiful developments. We also design sustainable and energy-efficient places to live that enhance and support the environment.”
The visit coincides with the new Labour Government’s pledge to build 1.5 million new homes in the coming Parliament as part of its commitment to major planning reforms.
Barratt is collaborating with the Government and other stakeholders through the Future Homes Hub to help the UK achieve net zero carbon emissions.
The built environment currently accounts for 40 per cent of the UK’s carbon footprint, and Energy House 2.0 is researching ways to reduce this through innovative design, power, heating, and insulation methods.
James Dunne, Managing Director of Barratt Homes Southampton Division, remarked: “The Energy House project is a bold statement about how we as housebuilders are taking climate change more seriously. Innovations can help improve the sustainable footprint of the housebuilding sector.”
He added that the controlled environment of Energy House allows for rapid data collection, accelerating the innovation process: “Usually, it would take years to collect the data needed to evaluate the performance of a new design or technology. Because researchers can precisely control the environment at Energy House, they can gather that data in months.”
Barratt Developments is dedicated to making future homes as eco-friendly as possible. James concluded: “Being part of the Energy House project is crucial for us as we strive to create sustainable homes for the future.”
