Summary
This project progressed the recommendations of the IGBC Healthy Homes Ireland report, which had identified the need to empower home occupants to operate their homes in a healthy and efficient manner. While many home builders already provided quality “Consumer Information and Aftercare” materials to buyers and occupants, this practice was not universal, and the quality of information varied significantly.
To address this, the project delivered a template and an example of a best-practice Home User Guide.
This template is for home-builders and developers who are providing home user guides to people moving into a newly built or renovated home. The Home Performance Index, Ireland’s national certification scheme for new homes, includes home user guides in its best practice on customer care. By using this template, your home user guide will align with the standards and recommendations set out in the Home Performance Index Technical Manual.
Home User Guide Tips
Collaborators
Principal Investigators
Fernanda Rocha
Project Manager and EPD Programme Administrator, Irish Green Building Council
Fernanda Rocha is a Project Manager at the Irish Green Building Council (IGBC). A civil engineer with an MSc from the Technical University of Munich, she specialized in Energy Efficient and Sustainable Building Design. At IGBC, Fernanda works on the Home Performance Index (HPI), EPD Ireland, and leads innovative projects that advance circular economy practices in the built environment. She developed the Home User Guide as part of the HPI Quality Assurance indicator 8.0 Customer Information and aftercare, helping developers to provide homeowners with non-technical information about how to better operate their homes efficiently and maintain a healthy indoor environment.
John Fingleton
Technical Project Manager, Irish Green Building Council
John joined IGBC in 2019 to manage the Home Performance Index Certification. John is an architect and has worked in private practice in Ireland, England, Spain and the US. John obtained a Masters in Low Energy Building Design and previously worked in the Sustainability team of Ethos Engineering.
John is managing the delivery of a National Home User Guide which is a Construct Innovate-funded project and has completed work packages under the EU Funded Smarter Projects. John is a LEED Accredited Professional, ID+C and BD+C. Email: john@igbc.ie“
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