The winners of the first ever Passive House Component Award have been selected and a total of twelve Passive House windows will receive recognition. The real winners, however, are the building owners, for the results of this international competition demonstrate that it is possible to save money with highly efficient building components. Manufacturers offered their products at retail prices including installation for an example building. For each of the four categories, “PVC,” “Wood,” “Wood/Aluminium,” and “Aluminium,” the overall investment and energy costs saved in comparison with standard windows were the decisive factor. The Award will be presented at the International Passive House Conference taking place from 25 to 26 April in Aachen, Germany.
In the “Wood” category, the joint first place winners are the Slovenian manufacturer M Sora for their Natura Optimo XL window and the German window company Pfeffer for their Pfeffer RPS window. The Holz-2-Holz window by Freisinger-Optiwin of Austria took second place. In the “Wood/Aluminium” category, the Smartwin Compact by Lorber-pro Passivhausfenster of Austria and the Futura by Bieber-Optiwin of France came in on top, followed by Freisinger-Optiwin again, this time with the Alu-2-Holz window.
The first prize in the “PVC” category went to German producer Hilzinger FBS GmbH for their VADB-Plus 550 window. The Pural eco 90 by Pural GmbH and the Frame 90 WI by Raico, both from Germany, were the winners in the “Aluminium” category. Special prizes went to German producers Passivhaus Transfer (dHPt), for their Delta Plus Cold Climate window (“Wood/Fibreglass, Synthetics”), Wiegand Fensterbau, for the glazing set in the DW-plus systems (“Innovative Glazing”), and Pazen Fenster + Technik, for their ENERsign arctis (“Lowest Heat Losses”).
“We are delighted at the level of active participation in the competition and congratulate the winners,” declares Dr. Wolfgang Feist, Scientific Director of the Passive House Institute – organiser of the Component Award competition. A total of 41 entries made it clear that Passive House windows are very attractive financially for building owners. “Overall cost savings of more than 25 percent, spread over the life span of the winning products, are possible. With Passive House quality products, the energy revolution becomes not only affordable, but even profitable.”
“Energy efficient, high quality components are an essential building block for the success of Passive House. It is important that these products provide not only convenience and comfort, but also economic advantages. We have proven this with this Award,” says Dr. Benjamin Krick, Head of Component Certification at the Passive House Institute.
The prizes will be presented by Dr. Wolfgang Feist at the Eurogress in Aachen. Many of the prize-winning windows will be exhibited by the manufacturers at the accompanying Component Exhibition which will take place from 25 to 26 April 2014, parallel to the International Passive House Conference. Further information can be found online on: www.passivehouseconference.org
