Sky Developments - Ministers From Both Sides of the Border Praise Developer's Zero Carbon Achievements!

07 December 2009

As the UN Climate Change Summit commences and world leaders work towards thrashing out a new deal to tackle climate change, Ministers from The Northern Ireland Assembly and The Dáil are celebrating the success achieved at one of the province's very own zero carbon projects.

Margaret Ritchie MLA, Minister for Social Development (Northern Ireland Executive) and John Gormley T.D., Minister For The Environment, Heritage and Local Government (Government of Ireland), will meet on Monday morning at a breakfast to celebrate the success achieved over the last year at Northern Ireland's First Carbon Zero Home, The Green House, Holywood.

This prototype, 2,200 square foot, zero carbon property, completed by Sky Developments last year, boasts an annual electricity bill of only £163.79, an amount akin to what some traditional build homes of a similar size might pay in a single month.
The aptly named Green House, on the shores of Belfast Lough, was the brain child of local developers Stephen McCready & Alan Johnston, directors of Sky Developments. The first property of its type in the province, this unique building has been the focus of extensive monitoring by the University of Ulster throughout the last 12 months.

Proven to be an invaluable test bed for Sky, the company has used the Green House to develop, assess and refine the low carbon building solutions they are currently providing to both public and private sector housing markets, and with the imminent release of their innovative POD4 modular housing solutions in the new year, Stephen is confident about the future for green buildings in Ireland, North & South. He comments: "Presently we are experiencing some of the most difficult times the construction industry has seen in the province, yet we are positive about the future for Sky Developments. We have kept faith with the concepts and ideals of sustainable building methods and have developed systems that work to save end users money and reduce carbon emissions.

Climate change is high on the agenda of leaders worldwide and we are delighted to be at the forefront of the NI building industry, offering a range of proven building solutions that can really make a difference to the carbon emissions of new homes."

Sky's latest low carbon offering, the POD4 modular home, has drawn on technologies developed at The Green House and represents one further step forward for the company. Other current projects include NI's first low carbon, affordable housing development in Newtownards (40 apartments) and 'Willis Green', the first residential development in the province to reach an EPC rating of 'B'.

The new POD4 modular homes will be constructed off site under factory tolerances offering a welcome boost to the NI manufacturing sector and the potential creation of 60 new jobs.

When asked about the achievements of Sky at The Green House and hopes for a greener future for NI, Margaret Ritchie MLA commented:

"I would like to welcome Minister Gormley to view some of our latest housing technologies and discuss sharing best practice across administrations.

"Whilst our respective housing markets have their own individual characteristics, there is a commonality in many of the problems we face. What better way to proceed than by sharing experiences and identifying new and innovative solutions."
"After one year in operation, we have real housing data to analyse and know that it is possible to deliver significant reductions in both our carbon footprint and energy bills.

"Sky Developments are to be congratulated on leading the way with this impressive, innovative housing project which shows what is possible here and now."

John Gormley T.D. added:

"I welcome the significant efforts being taken by both administrations to ensure that new residential construction projects, including social housing stock, were being designed and built to high energy efficiency and sustainable development standards."

"Like Minister Ritchie, I believe that we must continue to seek to reduce emissions from the residential sector. A key challenge for us all in the years ahead will be the mainstreaming of high energy efficiency performance in the residential sector and across all sectors of the building industry."