Academic/industry innovations for sustainable building design and refurbishment

Development and efficient dissemination of innovations for sustainable building design and refurbishment are crucial for the competitiveness of companies operating in construction sector which faces the pressure to reduce levels of carbon emissions from existing and new buildings to zero. The sector is also challenged to become more sustainable regarding its other environmental, social and economic impacts. An overwhelming majority of companies operating in the construction sector in Scotland are small to medium size enterprises (SMEs) who do not have sufficient resources in the current economic downturn to undertake research in building design, products and processes that will make buildings more sustainable. A joint project of seven Scottish universities has been initiated to support collaboration with small to medium size enterprises in developing and disseminating innovation for sustainable building design and refurbishment. The project concept and methods used for efficient dissemination of the project outputs to SMEs across Scotland are explained. An analysis of the outputs of feasibility studies completed and academic consultancy provided through the project indicates the range of problems tackled and trends in the development and use of innovations for more sustainable built environment in Scotland.