Residential Cork Property Wins National Energy Efficiency Award

A one-off residential home in County Cork has been recognised as Ireland's best built and most energy efficient project at a national awards ceremony.

'The Fairways' project in Douglas claimed the 2019 Overall ISOVER Award, with Simply Architecture winning Designer of the Year 2019 for the same entry.

The ISOVER Awards celebrate the Irish construction industry professionals that place the green building agenda at the heart of their projects and champion energy efficiency in their work.

The prizes were dished out at a ceremony at the Smock Alley Theatre in Dublin today, 06 June. Over 100 construction and building professionals, including architects, engineers, builders and developers, came out in force for the third annual event.

A panel of judges praised 'The Fairways' for demonstrating the perfect way of doing things in terms of sustainability and design, and showcasing a stunning residential property that achieves the passive house standard. The design responds ingeniously to an extremely challenging suburban site to prove that world class energy performance can be achieved with show-stopping aesthetics, utilising low embodied energy materials.


Simply Architecture delivered the build on a steeply sloping site, previously a builder's yard, traversed by three way leaves. It looked implausible; three wayleaves ensured only a small wedge in the corner of the site could be developed and the steep slope made access difficult. The planning authority placed restrictions on the ridge height and south facing windows to prevent overlooking. The house design is therefore a response to a variety of obstacles. Given the unusual shape and the steep slope, aesthetics, orientation and access all became issues that needed to be carefully considered. Additionally the house achieved full Passive House certification. The compact building form ensured the slope could be negotiated quite efficiently and south facing, high level windows provide sufficient solar gain while avoiding any overlooking issues.

Managing Director of ISOVER in Ireland, Brian Dolan said: "Today, leaders in Ireland's construction sector were celebrated and awarded for their world class energy efficient building projects. All building professionals play a significant role in promoting the benefits of energy efficient buildings and thus have a crucial part in providing Ireland with a more energy efficient future. The ISOVER awards showcase what excellence in energy efficient design and build looks like in 2019 and highlights the importance of continually striving to improve the energy performance of our buildings. It is crucial that we continue to take the energy efficient concept forward and continue to promote its benefits to individual homeowners and businesses."

The ISOVER winners were chosen by an elite panel of industry experts including Pat Barry, CEO of the Irish Green Building Council, Jeff Colley, Editor of Passive House Plus Magazine, and Patrick Bradley, architect and former judge on 'Home of the Year'.

For a full list of winners visit the ISOVER website.

(CM/JG)