NSW sustainable builder Blue Eco Homes won two awards at the prestigious 2023 HIA Australian GreenSmart Awards, announced Friday 25th August.

Yellow Rock Passive House by Blue Eco Homes won the highest accolade, the 2023 HIA Australian GreenSmart Home, with the home also being awarded the HIA AustralianGreenSmart Custom Built Home, partnered by ColorBOND Steel.

Built upon a bushfire-ravaged site in the Blue Mountains, the home was designed to sustainably reinhabit the former dwelling’s footprint by incorporating the still-standing garage/carport and pool husk into the new property. Today, the site contains a three-story, multi-generational, and fully accessible home that hugs the sloping bushland and maximizes the block’s orientation for the passive benefits of natural sunlight.

Through meticulous thermal and view analysis, the home attempts to achieve the highly rigorous Passivhaus-Plus standards, which place stricter requirements on the energy performance of the building envelope and the generation of energy from renewable sources. A 15 kW solar PV system and 28 kWh battery help to answer these requirements, allowing the home to operate semi-off-grid.

The HIA Australian GreenSmart Awards recognize the best in sustainable housing. Award winners and finalists make a positive difference to the environment by building energy-efficient and comfortable homes.

Awards major sponsor, the Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS), provides energy ratings for new dwellings and major renovations, which helps create energy-efficient, resilient, and comfortable homes for the future. For more information on NatHERS visit https://www.nathers.gov.au/

Winners from around Australia were recognized for their contribution to sustainable building practices.

• MyStyle Homes (Qld) from North Queensland won the HIA Australian GreenSmart Display/Project Home for the MyInfinity display home in Cairns. The home sets a new benchmark in tropical sustainability by achieving an incredible 10-star energy rating at an affordable price point for consumers. The Australian Reinforcing Company partnered in the category.
• Home in Place from Hunter won HIA Australian GreenSmart Multi Dwelling Development for a contemporary 16-unit apartment complex that achieves excellent sustainable, accessible and affordable housing outcomes in Newcastle.This category partnered by Bondor Metecno.
• Ovens & King Builders from Victoria won HIA Australian GreenSmart Energy Efficiency for an airtight building constructed to the Passive House standards which maintains a comfortable ambient temperature and excellent internal air quality year-round. The category is partnered by Architectural Window Systems.
• Light House Architecture & Science and 360 Building Solutions, from the ACT, won the HIA Australian GreenSmart Sustainable Home Award for a compact, 7.9-star energy-efficient home that cleverly adapts to an awkwardly oriented and sloping site to optimize solar passive gains. Category partnered by WoodSolutions.
• Light House Architecture & Science and 360 Building Solutions also won the HIA Australian GreenSmart Renovation and Addition Project for a thoughtful renovation that refreshed a tired and uncomfortable 1960s Canberra duplex into a modern, energy- and water-efficient home. This category is partnered by Holcim.
• Ashley Beaumont from Ecoliv Buildings and Beaumont Building Designfrom Victoria won the HIA Australian GreenSmart Professional Award. Ashley started Ecoliv Buildings 13 years ago to create carbon-positive prefabricated modular buildings that balance the needs of homeowners today without compromising the future. This category is partnered with HIA Insurance Services.

In congratulating the winners, HIA Managing Director Graham Wolfe said the HIA Australian GreenSmart Awards recognize HIA members who deliver the latest in environmental design excellence and sustainable building practices.

“With the incoming changes to the National Construction Code, energy efficiency, water savings, and condensation are important considerations for clients, designers, builders,, and material suppliers alike. 

“HIA’s commitment to sustainable building outcomes through environmentally focused design, innovation,, and construction has not altered over the 23 years the HIA GreenSmart program has been running. Our members demonstrate that comfort, security, innovation,, and value for money can coexist in a sustainable built environment.

“Each winner and finalist is congratulated for achieving success at a national level. They are at the top of their field and are committed to building sustainable homes for their clients,” concluded Mr. Wolfe.

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