Systems based approach to replicable low cost housing: renewable energy supply, storage and demand reduction.

Staff at the Welsh School of Architecture at Cardiff University have recently designed and constructed the Solcer House to demonstrate how a systems based approach, combining renewable energy supply, energy storage and reduced demand technologies, can be integrated into the design of a typical house whilst significantly reducing energy use and carbon emissions. The Solcer House is capable, over an annual period, of generating more energy than it requires whilst the construction costs of the house are within the limits of typical affordable home. Regional manufacturers, suppliers and installers of low carbon technologies have been used wherever possible to maintain competitive costs and stimulate local supply chains.