Category: News & Blogs

Groundbreaking VIPs from left to right: Salvatore Ciarlo (Technical Services Manager, Owens Corning Canada), Paolo Galati (Councilor, City of Laval), Meli Stylianou (Manager, CanmetENERGY, Natural Resources Canada), René Voyer (Founding Member, Construction Voyer), Guy Ouellette (Député de Chomedey), Michael Lio (President, buildABILITY Corporation), Pascal Voyer (Co-Owner, Construction Voyer), Jean-Francois Voyer (Co-Owner, Construction Voyer)

 

A Quebec first in Laval

Construction Voyer building six net zero energy homes as part of Natural Resources Canada’s ecoENERGY Innovation Initiative’s national Net Zero Energy project

(June 22, 2015, Laval, QC) Lucky homeowners in Laval will soon be moving into new net zero energy homes. Today, Construction Voyer broke ground on six condos as part of a national program that will see a minimum of 25 net zero energy (NZE) homes built across Canada. NZE homes produce as much energy as they consume, on an annual basis.

Construction Voyer is the only Quebec-based homebuilder selected for the project, which is part of Natural Resources Canada (NRCan)’s ecoENERGY Innovation Initiative (ecoEII). The condos, expected to be completed by March 2016, are being built in the Duvernay East neighbourhood of Laval, close to the Highway 25 bridge.

“Our Government is proud to invest in initiatives like the Net Zero Homes project that create high-quality jobs and further strengthen Canada’s reputation as a leader in energy innovation,” said the Honourable Greg Rickford, Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources. “We remain committed to supporting companies that find solutions to protect the environment and lower energy bills for Canadians.”

“Speaking on behalf of staff and management, Construction Voyer is thrilled to be participating in the NZE demonstration project,” said Jean-Francois Voyer, Co-Owner, Construction Voyer. “It is proving to be a terrific experience which is allowing us to display our expertise in building high quality homes, while always looking for ways to utilize cutting-edge technology.”

A number of features allow the condos to achieve the drastic reductions in energy consumption required to meet NZE standards, including innovative heat and cooling equipment, solar PV panels on the roof, and the innovative exterior insulation CodeBord® Air Barrier System from Owens Corning Canada.

“We are extremely proud to be working with a true leader and energy efficiency ambassador in the building construction industry in Quebec,” stated Salvatore Ciarlo, Technical Services Manager, Owens Corning Canada. “Coupled with all of our project partners, we look forward to making the net zero project in Quebec a huge success that will be the benchmark across Canada and North America.”

NRCan is providing $1.96 million in support for professional services required for the planning, design and construction of the houses. The balance, over $2 million, will come from Owens Corning Canada, participating builders and the building industry in the form of in-kind contributions to fund the construction of the homes. The project, managed by buildABILITY Corporation, includes five builders across Canada: Construction Voyer (Laval, Quebec); Mattamy Homes Limited (Calgary, Alberta); Reid’s Heritage Homes (Guelph, Ontario); Minto Communities (Ottawa, Ontario); and Provident Development Inc. (Halifax, Nova Scotia).

Media Contact:

Jean-François Voyer | Co-owner, Director of Business Development | Construction Voyer

(450) 963-8300 | jfvoyer@voyer.ca

Note to Editor:

A live video stream of construction can be viewed here:https://www.workzonecam.com/projects/buildability/ocnetzero/workzonecam

Construction Voyer, founded in 1973, has built over 6,000 residential units: single-family dwellings, condominiums and rental buildings. Although the company originally earned its reputation primarily in Laval and cities along the northern belt, in 1998 it began expanding its activities onto the island of Montreal. Recently, Construction Voyer has developed an expansion plan to extend activities into new territories.

Owens Corning Canada is part of Owens Corning, a US$5.2 billion company with 15,000 employees worldwide, including 654 in Canada. Owens Corning and its family of companies are a leading global producer of residential and commercial building materials, glass-fiber reinforcements, and engineered materials for composite systems. A Fortune® 500 company for 60 consecutive years, the company is committed to driving sustainability by delivering solutions, transforming markets, and enhancing lives. Owens Corning operates 4 plants in Canada, manufacturing PINK® insulation and other energy-saving products.

The ecoENERGY Innovation Initiative (ecoEII), announced in the 2011 Budget, is a $268 million program searching for long-term solutions to eliminate air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions from energy production. Eligible projects must be demonstration or research & development.

For more information about the ecoEII Net Zero project, please visit: www.zeroenergy.ca

Check out our article in OHBA’s Spring 2015 issue where buildABILITY’s President, Michael Lio, shares a few words on the growth of Energy Star.

Blake Seeberger, Senior Vice President, Residential at Reid’s Heritage Homes talks about Net Zero homes, the cost/benefit of buying one, and how it is going to become the future of energy efficient homes on CBC Radio.

Listen to the segment here: http://www.cbc.ca/player/Radio/Local+Shows/Ontario/The+Morning+Edition+-+K-W/ID/2540875155/

Michael Lio’s article, “They Don’t Build Them Like They Used To – They Build Them Better”, is featured in the Fall 2014 issue of BILD’s Toronto Builder magazine. Check out a preview below:

Monday, September 29, 2014 – On site at the Groundbreaking event ceremony
From left to right, Andy Goyda (Market Development Manager, Owens Corning Canada), Salvatore Ciarlo (Technical Services Manager, Owens Corning Canada), Blake Seeberger, (Senior Vice-President, Residential, Reid’s Heritage Homes), Michael Lio (President, buildABILITY Corporation), Candice Luck (Director, Strategy & Programs, buildABILITY Corporation), and Ric McFadden (Vice President & General Manager, Building Materials, Owens Corning Canada)

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Today, Reid’s Heritage Homes hosted the inaugural groundbreaking ceremony for a national net-zero energy homes (NZE) demonstration project. Present to mark the occasion was Harold Albrecht, Member of Parliament for Kitchener—Conestoga (Ontario), on behalf of the Honourable Greg Rickford, Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources. He was joined at the podium by City of Guelph Mayor, Karen Farbridge, executives from Reid’s Heritage Homes and representatives from Owens Corning Canada and The University of Guelph.

The project involves five Canadian production homebuilders constructing a total of 25 net-zero energy homes, for which buildABILITY Corporation is the project manager and lead consultant. The project is funded in part by the federal government’s ecoENERGY Innovation Initiative (ecoEII), along with contributions from each participating builder, industry suppliers and Owens Corning Canada.

 “Our government is proud to invest in programs like the ecoENERGY Innovation Initiative which create high-quality jobs and further strengthen Canada’s reputation as a worldwide leader in energy innovation,” said Mr. Albrecht. “We remain committed to supporting companies that are finding solutions to protect the environment and lower energy bills for all Canadians”.     

The project’s 25 homes, five from each builder, will significantly increase the total number of NZE homes found across the country, homes that over a year generate all of the energy they consume. While many people already agree that net zero is the future of the building industry, many current NZE homes are custom-built projects, using elaborate designs and expensive technologies and inputs, disconnected from the realities of affordability.

By focusing on affordability and market acceptance, the project’s production builders, have taken on the unique challenges associated with mainstreaming NZE practices. This project acts as a platform for the broader adoption of NZE across Canada. “The project’s builders and consultants and Owens Corning Canada are leaders in their markets, and should be commended for their initiative and enterprise,” said Michael Lio, President of buildABILITY.

“It is hugely rewarding as project managers to see the pieces coming together,” said Candice Luck, the Project Manager. buildABILITY initiated the project concept, and promoted its vision for better homes for Canadians to Owens Corning and Natural Resources Canada (NRCan). The firm developed an innovative project structure by strategically picking five regional teams that include five of the largest production housing builders in five of the five most prominent production housing locations in the country each paired with a local housing consultant to provide day to day support.

buildABILITY has been choreographing this national project, including facilitating conversations with net zero experts across Canada, coordinating a national net zero design charrette, and securing project partners, bringing likeminded companies together.

Unlike other industries, innovations in housing do not seamlessly move through market transformation stages and it can take decades to adopt new building practices. “While most organizations work within the confines of one market transformation stage”, said Mr. Lio, “buildABILITY exists in the space between each stage, connecting, and integrating. Our focus is on the largest and typically the most expensive consumer product – the house. The company’s deep technical expertise and its understanding of the diffusion of innovation allow it to act as a change catalyst for organizations and for the housing industry as a whole.”

“We are very pleased with the announcement of the groundbreaking today. It has been an honour to work with the Reid’s Heritage Homes, Owens Corning Canada, and the other builders and consultants involved in this project. We are excited to see the finished homes, and to start to see the impact of this project on the marketplace.”

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For more information on the net zero project, please visit www.zeroenergy.ca

buildABILITY Corporation provides a variety of services – from training to publication development to consulting. With a focus on helping clients to adapt to change, buildABILITY inspires action by building knowledge, capacity, and abilities. Since 1983, members of the buildABILITY team have been involved in projects commissioned by various organizations including national and provincial governments, housing authorities, utilities, trade associations, builders, developers, and product manufacturers. buildABILITY builds momentum with companies ready to transform the industry, like these NZE builders and consultants who are changing the game on net zero. For more information on buildABILITY’s projects visit www.buildability.ca.

Project Contact: Candice Luck | Director of Strategy and Programs | 416.961.3487| candice@buildability.ca

The ecoENERGY Innovation Initiative (ecoEII), announced in the 2011 Budget, is a $268 million program searching for long-term solutions to eliminate air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions from energy production. Eligible projects must be demonstration or research & development.

In the Summer 2014 issue of Better Builder Magazine, Michael Lio authored two articles: Working with Municipalities and Building a More Weather-Resilient Home.

New homes run as energy-efficient systems

By BRYAN TUCKEY Special to the Star
Fri., May 16, 2014

It’s true that they don’t build them like they used to: they build them better than ever.

Today’s builders, architects, renovators and other professionals in the home-building industry have a greater understanding about how a lowrise house behaves as a complete system. And they are putting that knowledge to work to build homes that use energy more efficiently, are safer than ever and can save homeowners money on their bills each year.

With more than 100,000 people coming to the GTA every year, the question for newcomers often turns to whether to buy a new or resale home. One of the arguments for buying new is the quality of new construction is constantly improving.

Innovative features and building practices that reduce energy consumption and environmental impact in today’s new homes include pre-fabricated and modular structural elements, insulated concrete forms and energy-recovery systems that use waste energy to heat cold air and water.

With all of these new improvements, what could possibly make people think that the homes built decades ago are better than today’s homes? Nostalgia, says building scientist Michael Lio, of Lio & Associates.

“It’s true,” he says. “We don’t build them they way we used to. We build them even better. There is a vast improvement in quality. You can’t use sloppy methods — it forces you to build better quality homes.

“We build the very best houses in the world right here in Ontario.”
Lio says that if anyone spends some time in a downtown Toronto home that hasn’t been renovated in years, there’s a good chance they’ll find mould growing because of thermal bridging, single-pane windows (not up to current code), inefficient furnaces and poor insulation levels.

“There is 75 per cent less energy used in a home built today than a house built in the ’60s,” Lio says.

Gord Cooke, another building scientist and president of Building Knowledge Canada, says needs and expectations of homeowners have changed with those improvements in quality.

“We used to wake up to cold rooms and floors in the morning and didn’t think much of it. Now people want to wake up warm and cosy with the same temperature throughout the house,” Cooke says.

And they can have that comfort. There have been quantum leaps in the Ontario Building Code (OBC) since 2006, pushed by energy-efficiency programs, such as Energy Star for new homes, and groups like EnerQuality, which designs and implements green building programs.

The OBC is updated every five to six years with improvements made to fire safety, energy efficiency and durability.

Cooke says he compared the OBC from 1982 with the 2006 OBC. The newer version contained at least 30 per cent more references and requirements from a safety perspective, including carbon monoxide detectors, safety railings, and staircases and windows as a route of escape during a fire.

With improvements that reduce heat loss through windows, doors, walls, attics and basements, plus better furnaces and air conditioning, savings are close behind.

For a two-storey, 2,200-sq.-ft. house built eight years ago, the most recent building code change would present a $500 annual savings on energy use. For the same size house built 40 years ago, it would be about $2,000.

Today’s top builders understand how houses work as a system. There’s no question that new homes top resale in energy efficiency.

Bryan Tuckey is president and CEO of the Building Industry and Land Development Association and a land-use planner who has worked for municipal, regional and provincial governments. Follow him on Twitter @bildgta, facebook.com/bildgta , and bildblogs.ca.

To read the article on the Toronto Star, please visit: https://www.thestar.com/life/homes/2014/05/16/new_homes_run_as_energyefficient_systems.html