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Traditional building energy modeling requires specialized expertise and significant time and resources, often making it less cost-effective, particularly for smaller projects. AI and machine learning (ML) techniques address these challenges by improving both the accuracy and speed of energy modeling. AI can help process large datasets that include building geometry, material properties, climate data, occupancy behavior and historical energy use, to identify patterns and generate insights. ML algorithms can predict energy consumption by training on past data, helping designers estimate future performance without running exhaustive simulations.

During the design stage of a new building, thousands of models are typically generated to evaluate various design options. Traditional approaches may require extensive computation time, whereas AI models can produce results in minutes or even seconds. This speed enables integration with smart optimizers, allowing designers to quickly identify configurations that maximize energy efficiency while minimizing costs.

For existing buildings, AI facilitates faster and more accurate analysis of retrofit options by calibrating data-driven models more efficiently than traditional methods. These models can prioritize upgrades based on cost-effectiveness and sequence them for optimal impact. For example, consider retrofit options, like insulation upgrades, LED lighting upgrades and replacing single-pane windows with double-glazed ones, each with varying capital and operating costs. AI can predict the energy savings and cost implications of each measure individually, as well as in combination, to assess their overall impact on future energy consumption, optimizing their sequence to maximize cost-effectiveness and ROI.

Additionally, AI enhances the operation of heating and cooling systems through advanced control strategies, improving energy efficiency in real time. Clustering techniques analyze occupant behavior patterns to refine energy usage and enable fault detection and diagnosis of mechanical equipment. By automating complex processes, AI and ML make energy modeling more accessible, scalable, and effective for both new construction and retrofitting projects.

Please join us for our upcoming webinar in February 2025.

Low Carbon Home Builder’s Coalition Annual Dinner

Environmental, Social Governance, Embodied Carbon and a celebration of Better Builder magazine’s 50^th issue.

The idea behind the LCHC is to annually benchmark as many homes as possible in the last 4 years to see how progress in new home construction is stacking up against federal commitments — a type of report card for residential builders. In 2023, the coalition effectively got 527 cars off the road and saved their home buyers 1.6 million dollars in energy costs annually. The 2024 numbers will be presented at the dinner! With respect to local green building standards, the coalition is working to preserve a builders’ choice on how they meet local requirements and educate municipalities through engagement.

Please think about joining the coalition for a fall dinner meeting, Tuesday November 26^th 2024 from 5:00pm – 8:00pm at Thornhill Golf and Country Club to find out more. It’s on us!

Topics will include:

• ESG
• Keynote speaker: Chris Magwood from the Endeavour Centre
• The Modified Hybrid House Approach
• Local Green Building Standards update

To register for the event please sign up on https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sustainable-housing-foundation-dinner-tickets-1073259521119?aff=oddtdtcreator

The impact of climate change has reached a point where it can no longer be ignored. Nowhere is this movement more impactful than the construction industry. As the Ontario Building Code did not harmonize with the National Building Code, Ontario builders have a chance to voluntarily show leadership and forward thinking. In Ontario, simply ceasing to use fossil fuels as an energy source is not a possibility with Ontario’s specific challenges.

Builders, manufacturers, and governing bodies all recognize the significance of their part in helping to reduce the carbon footprint of the residential and commercial construction industries.  Manufacturers are tasked with producing products with a lower carbon footprint, that also helps to improve energy efficiency. Nothing can be truer of this than the emergence of higher efficiency heat pumps. These can provide supplemental heating during off-peak electrical demand to lower the impact on Ontario’s peak demand problem. Builders must meet the evolving regulatory requirements of the municipalities in which they build; constructing homes that reduce energy and water consumption with products that have a low carbon footprint.

If you are interested in learning more on how heat pumps can help us meet our current challenge, please think about joining Michael McCallum, an HVAC designer, Michael Lio and Sonny Pirotta, for a zoom seminar called “Heat pumps to the rescue.” This seminar will be held via zoom on October 23^rd 2024 from 10:30 am – 12:00pm. To join the call please use this link, https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85359995546?pwd=ytnFr0tjlfrxPOChEguNoLgwFrguRo.1

Please save the date for the Sustainable Housing Foundation’s Annual Fall dinner meeting, showcasing the achievements of the Low Carbon Home Builder Coalition.  It will be held on Tuesday November 26th 2024 at Thornhill Golf and Country Club between 5:00pm – 8:00pm.

This past June, a Canadian builder, was on a flight back to Toronto from Florida after Game Seven of the Stanley Cup final. Along the way, the builder struck up a conversation with an American developer, comparing notes on home energy efficiency. Surprisingly, this person made a comment that Canadian builders were not doing their part in reducing CO₂ emissions compared to their U.S. counterparts.

The American builder’s observation was far from the truth. Unbeknown to him, this builder had recently won a Cross Border Builder Challenge award for one of its subdivisions with a HERS score of 41 and an average 1.67 ACH (air changes per hour), joining six other Canadian winners and equaling the number of American winners in the Challenge. The builder corrected his U.S. counterpart on his comment (politely, as Canadians do) and referred him to their website. He also pointed out a fact regarding the Oilers’ loss in the final — they were beaten by a team made up of at least 50% Canadian players!

As in hockey (and beer), this builder is something of a Canadian superstar when it comes to energy-efficient home building. The company constructed its first Energy Star project named Block 39 in Vaughan in 2007. A number of years later, Richmond Hill was experiencing issues with its existing infrastructure, specifically its sanitary sewer capacity. To help meet the challenge, the builder entered into a subdivision agreement with the municipality to construct its 112 homes to exceed Energy Star using the Home Energy Rating System (HERS), as well as equipping each home with solar hot water heating.

More recently, the builder has been adopting the Enbridge Savings by Design program in its Richmond Hill and Brampton subdivisions and built a discovery home in its Centerfield subdivision using a hybrid home gas/electric heating/cooling approach. This includes a three-season heat pump that provides supplemental heating. “A hybrid house is like a hybrid car,” the builder explains. “In the dead of winter when it’s very cold outside, you heat with natural gas. During the other seasons, an air source heat pump supplies heat and cooling with inexpensive off-peak electricity.”

Sustainability has long been a vital component of the company’s construction practices, and the Better Than Code platform has been instrumental in helping it meet many municipal energy efficiency standards, consistently exceeding Energy Star performance. This is in keeping with the company’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) policy.

ESG requires organizations to develop strategies and practical approaches that will allow them to set and achieve environmental, social and governance goals. Over the last few years, the ESG practice has received a lot of global attention,

placing it among the key global trends in the development and operation of modern business.

In the U.S. and Canada, ESG is guided by the RESNET Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) standards for home builders, which includes several metrics such as HERS and HERS_H2O scores, Estimated Energy and Water Savings, RESNET Carbon Index scores, CO₂ Emissions, Energy Star Certification, Zero Energy Ready Home Certification, and Renewable Energy Use.

“Not winning the Stanley Cup this year was a bit disappointing for me and for many Canadians,” the builder adds. “But leading the way in home energy efficiency on both sides of the border is something that we can all be proud of.”

This fall, this builder and other builders in the low carbon home builder coalition will be holding a dinner to talk about their Environmental and Social Governance approaches. Please join us in mid-october and watch for the date on our website.

On April 10, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (MMAH) announced that they would not completely harmonize the Ontario Building Code (OBC) with the National Building Code (NBC) 2020 9.36 and would preserve the use of SB-10 and SB-12. This is a victory to preserve builder choice — not just for energy compliance for building permits, but for allowing fairness in meeting local green building standards that solely reference government programs like Energy Star.

The Home Energy Rating System (HERS) index and software recognized in SB-12 can continue to allow a standards-based approach, so builders can define their environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance. Also, the HERS index and software is constantly monitored, improved and calibrated so that building codes, financial institutions and federal tax rebates can rely on the calculation of energy costs and CO₂ ratings and reductions.

Builders can use the HERS index and can readily compare their energy performance to their American counterparts. More importantly, the HERS carbon index allows them to compare their CO₂ emissions using an industry standard ANSI/RESNET/ICC 301 2022 Addendum B CO₂e Rating Index so they can score on their ESG goals. If builders want to play in the big leagues, having an ESG strategy is essential.

Federal climate change policy and the National Building Code (NBC) are targeting Net Zero Energy Ready new homes and buildings by 2030.  Local Ontario Green Building Standards are referencing the NBC 2020 step code Tier 4 and 5 or Zero Rated Home. How does this relate to current OBC prescriptions for energy performance, Energy Star or higher? The long-awaited Super Semi Demonstration Project report sheds light on this topic and raises important questions. How do we measure zero energy carbon based on a standards approach. Do Net Zero energy houses actually perform as modelled and intended to? Where is the point of diminishing marginal returns for envelope improvements? Do solar arrays on homes make sense without battery storage? How do the existing OBC prescriptions like Package A1 stand up against the Paris Accord and COP28? Lastly, how will this effect Environmental Social Governance (ESG) for builders if they are building houses to the bare minimum? Thank you to all who joined via zoom for John, Paul and Christian thought-provoking session on April 10^th 2024.

June 19, 2024 12 Noon to 5 PM

Flemingdon Golf Course, Toronto

The annual Green Builder Challenge Golf Tournament, hosted  by the Sustainable Housing Foundation’s President John Godden, is happening on Wednesday June 19th in the afternoon and you are invited to attend. Lunch and beverages will be provided before the first T-off time at 1 PM so come early and enjoy a relaxing lunch on the patio and great networking opportunity with your colleagues from the sustainable building industry in Toronto.

The price to play is $150 with all proceeds going toward supporting the educational training that the Foundation undertakes every year.  You can book for just yourself and we will place you in a foursome, or book your own foursome and reward your staff or clients to  a great afternoon of golf and comradery. Space is limited to 40 golfers so please book early. Please note that the game played will be best ball with T-offs scheduled every 10 minutes or so starting at 1 PM. The course is a nine hole course so only takes a couple of hours to play.  No mechanical carts are allowed but you will be provided with a pull handle. Golf clubs can be rented directly from the golf course if pre-arranged with them. Registration details posted below. Hope to see you there!

Please register at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2024-shf-green-builder-golf-tournament-tickets-907803914947?aff=oddtdtcreator

The impact of climate change has reached a point where it can no longer be ignored. Federal and Provincial governments have implemented rebates and taxes, to incentivize industry and citizens to do their part to address climate change. Most companies in North America have implemented strategies and targets to mitigate their impact on the environment. Companies express these efforts in Environmental Social Governance (ESG) policies and reporting. Nowhere is this movement more profound than the construction industry.

Topics include:

• Manufacturer’s products with lower Global Warming Potential (GWP) and EPD. Builders must meet the evolving regulatory requirements of the municipalities in which they build; The Low Carbon Home Builder Coalition (LCHC) constructs homes that reduce operational energy and water consumption with products that have a low GWP.
• Carbon rating systems like HERS and CAGBC Zero Carbon
• How the LCHC can empower builders to measure and report CO2 reduction for Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)

The virtual webinar will be hosted via Zoom on November 22nd, 2023 from 10:30am to 12:00pm. Please join us and register at Eventbrite via https://www.eventbrite.com/e/gwp-accountability-sustainable-engineering-practices-by-paul-lowes-tickets-756398828257

This year, like many others, was my first time attending the Low Carbon Home Builders Coalition. It was a great opportunity to network with other professionals such as Builders, Manufacturers, Contractors, City Officials, and many other industry stakeholders who share the vision of creating sustainable and affordable housing for our province. There were many great speakers at this event talking about Codes, Carbon, and the future of our housing. Furthermore, highlighting an important topic that was discussed is Combination Hybrid Heat Mechanical Systems, which is a cutting-edge, cost efficient technology that can reduce greenhouse gas emissions and energy costs. This heating and cooling strategy will keep the utility bills as low as possible for the occupants of the home and will be able to comfortably condition the home during any season of the year. In my opinion this Hybrid Heating solution is one of the key solutions to deal with carbon emissions while also maintaining affordable living. It taps into Ontario’s biggest energy source – off peak electricity surplus.

As we move towards reducing our carbon footprint it is very important that all parties involved in the building industry understand the target. Net Zero being the buzz word of today, understanding what Net Zero means and how it can be achieved is important for individuals, businesses, governments, and all parties involved. Currently, the net zero homes that we are building and labeling fall short of the targets we are trying to achieve. In that there actual performance is “not” zero. We need to continue the conversation so that the industry and innovators can support each other in their common goals.

Being a Residential HVAC Designer working with McCallum HVAC Design Inc, we consult with clients daily about making decisions regarding mechanical equipment and building envelope. The future of energy efficiency starts with the selection of insulation, the type of heat source and the control strategy.

I am hoping that being on the board of the Sustainable Housing Foundation will give me opportunities to meet new like-minded individuals, preview into what code changes are coming in the future and how I can better prepare myself and my company, McCallum HVAC with the continuously changing landscape of energy efficiency and low carbon technologies. Not only to know about the change, but also to give myself a voice in the discussion.

Michael McCallum – Newest board member

McCallum HVAC Design Inc.

LCHC September 26th 2023 in Thornhill