Ciralight UK has completed its first UK commercial active skylight project after a groundbreaking deal with Hull City Council and KWL, the principal and installing contractor.

In a further sign of the Humber’s growing reputation as a green energy centre of excellence, 28 of the large active skylights are now cutting energy bills and reducing carbon emissions at the council’s Stockholm Road maintenance depot, East Hull.

Corrugated Case Company (CCC), a leading independent corrugated box manufacturer is revolutionising its factory with British made LED lighting.

With the help of Greater Manchester-based lighting manufacturer, MHA Lighting, CCC is set to save over £60,000 on its lighting energy bills and over 140 Tonnes of Co2 by switching to LED.

Architect Sandy Hickey is no stranger to the benefits of an MVHR system, which is why she specified the latest energy efficient version from ADM Systems for refurbishment of her parents ‘earth-sheltered’ home in the Cotswolds.

The design of the home is 'a rectangle with a circle cut-out' - a curved frontage of glass facing south, along with windows to the three other sides - bringing in light from all directions. This property is unusual in a number of ways because most of the insulation is on top of the build like a thermal 'umbrella' that extends three metres past the sides. The house is built into a hillside, allowing the earth above and the sides to protect it from the heat of summer and cold of winter, saving on heating and cooling costs in the process.

There are few better examples of the benefits provided by an MVHR (Mechanical Ventilation with Heat Recovery) system than that of the Kwan household in Ipswich. The property illustrates many of the issues associated with modern homes which, despite being designed to current Building Regulations, often fail to live up to homeowner expectations.

In the case of the Kwan household, that meant minimum energy efficiency and ongoing issues associated with condensation caused by lack of ventilation.