VICTORIA – Passive House Canada has been awarded a grant of $1.6 million over three years from Natural Resources Canada’s Codes Acceleration Fund to support the development and delivery of comprehensive training programs for building officials and airtightness field testers and designers, as well as a technical assistance program for component manufacturers.
The grant will facilitate the creation of targeted training modules designed to equip building officials and airtightness field testers and designers with the skills necessary to meet the upper tiers of national building codes, indicates a release.
The grant will also help high-performance component manufacturers meet the decarbonization goals of social housing providers. The programs will address critical knowledge gaps and capacity issues that currently hinder the progress of high-performance building projects.
The Building Officials Training is virtual and aims to enhance the expertise of building officials in reviewing and approving high-performance building plans. By focusing on advanced building techniques, such as efficient enclosures and mechanical systems, the training will streamline the approval process and reduce project delays.
The in-person Airtightness Field Testers and Designers Training will provide field testers and designers with the practical knowledge required for conducting airtightness testing on large buildings. The program will ensure these professionals can verify and ensure building performance, contributing to overall compliance with high-performance standards.
With the Component Manufacturers Technical Assistance Program, Passive House Canada is seeking to engage manufacturers in developing high-performance windows, building envelopes and ventilation systems. The program aims to foster collaboration with social housing providers, creating component specifications and driving market transformation.
According to Passive House Canada, the expected outcomes of the initiative include increased availability and affordability of high-performance building products, enhanced local capacity for energy-efficient building design and construction and improved compliance with the highest tiers of national building codes.
“This funding will enable us to tackle some of the most pressing challenges in the building sector, such as knowledge gaps and capacity issues,” said Chris Ballard, CEO of Passive House Canada, in a statement. “By providing targeted training and technical support, we aim to create a robust high-performance building sector capable of meeting ambitious energy performance standards.”
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