Harnessing the power of nature to bring life into buildings

HVAC Spot On

With ventilation moving up the list of current buzzwords due to the increased need for fresh air thanks to the COVID-19 situation, the HVAC sector is focused on innovation. The most creative companies have managed to harness nature in order to find solutions for heating and cooling all types of buildings in a more cost-effective and environmentally-friendly manner. Given that present-day buildings are the third-largest consumer of fossil fuels, they are rising up to meet the challenge of the rapidly-expanding construction sector.

The last few months have seen dramatic changes in the modern world, and perhaps this is driving us towards the implementation of new ways of doing things — including how we ventilate and heat our buildings. Natural heating and ventilation innovations are playing an increasingly important role in building designs, offering benefits to our health, our planet and the performance of our buildings. In this Spot On, we explore the benefits of harnessing natural ventilation and cooling innovations to help fight the battle against climate change whilst still maintaining a comfortable and healthy indoor environment. PHILIP BARKER, HVAC SPECIALIST, OAKLINS

We sit down with Monodraught, who design, manufacture, install and maintain ventilation, cooling and heating systems for low-energy, low-carbon buildings, to talk about the key industry trends, as well as gain their thoughts on the industry’s future given the current situation.