It’s a bit overdue, but I did promise to write a report on my trip to China, to attend #IPHC23. (23rd International Passive House Conference.) Here it is.... as long, and probably rambling,.

I’ll break my #iphc23 report into chapters: 1. Plenary & Policy Overview, 2. Conference presentations, 3. Expo, followed by 4. An editorial. (And perhaps some highlights of the short vacation I took afterwards to #Xinjiang, if I have time.)

1. Plenary & Policy: it was clear from the first moment I landed in Beijing that this event would not be a typical #Passivhaus conference. The Chinese Gov rolled out the red carpet, not just for practitioners, but as an all out International trade event. #IPHC23

Major EU & Chinese captains of industry were hosted by the Governor of Hebei Province, along with representatives of local & national #Passivhaus organizations at a private pre-event reception. Governor Xu Qin delivered a message directly from Pres. Xi Jinping... #iphc23

To emphasize the importance of #Passivhaus as a “Sunrise Movement” for China, and that Hebei Province was directed to pilot its roll-out across all provinces. This reception was televised as national news that night. #IPHC23 (I was the only American present.)

Just how seriously China was taking #Passivhaus became abundantly clear as the conference officially opened - to more fanfare than we’ve ever previously seen at this event. #IPHC23

I’ll spare you the blow by blow plenary pronouncements and skip straight to the keynote from @DianaUrge. Her #IPCC report scenarios showed we must optimize building design as SYSTEMS rather than just via isolated components. #IPHC23

. @DianaUrge dug in deeper to show that diseases are directly attributable to building’s #IAQ, making ventilation essential. Furthermore, materials matter & we can no longer ignore their impact on emissions. #iphc23

- @DianaUrge’s closing summary framed the rest of the conference proceedings: #Passivhaus is a baseline. We must add upfront materials carbon & durability. Buildings are THE key to 1.5C. Every building built TODAY that isn’t these 3 things, locks us into higher temps. #IPHC23

[Take a well-deserved tea break here folks. .... I’m parched myself.] *Images from my visit to the legendary tea house in Kashgar. (Post #IPHC23)

Ok. I’m ready for Chapter 2: Conference proceedings. I’ll divvy these tweets Into sub-topics, to mirror the event tracks I followed, starting with the “Ecology” track, AKA upfront carbon emissions. #iphc23

It’s been fascinating to watch the proliferation of new tools being used by the #Passivhaus community to assess #UCE’s (upfront carbon emissions.) The Brits, Kiwis & Austrians presented various tools at #iphc23, (with #CLT most often coming out as a big winner.)

- @ArchitypeUK’s thorough comparative analysis of the largest #Passivhaus in the UK demonstrated the impact of materials choices, but clearly showed they should be combined with #efficiencyfirst for maximum reduction. #iphc23

NZ’s Jason Quinn followed with a demo of a tool being developed in collaboration with @BRANZlive, and reached the same conclusion using 3 smaller @PHI_NZ projects: #Passivhaus + low #UCE’s is the #KillerApp. #IPHC23

*Not presented here, but equally interesting is a UK plugin for #PHPP being supported by @AECBnet called PHRibbon. Read more about that here: https://blog.passivehouse-international.org/essential-tools-plugins-addons-for-phpp/ #IPHC23

Another track featured an outstanding case study by @AECOM’s Pablo Sepulveda, who walked us through the rapid development process of @MonashUni’s #CLT+ #Passivhaus dorms. #iphc23 (full link to that here: https://blog.passivehouse-international.org/essential-tools-plugins-addons-for-phpp/ )

#electrifyeverything featured heavily: 2B. Burkhardt Shulze Darup compared gas vs electric heating & hot water equip combos typical for #Passivhaus apartment buildings. #iphc23

He then dove into a more nuanced comparison of #heatpumps, comparing various combos and HVAC layout options, including life-cycle costing. PER framework shows decentralized #allelectric design wins. #iphc23

This, combined with Jessica Grove-Smith’s review of the climate-specific PER factors for some of China’s largest cities, drove home how important it is everywhere to quickly transition off of #fossilgas. #iphc23

Next big session theme: RETROFITS! 2C. Again, the amazing @AusPHAssoc reps came in with another outstanding case study (again in @cityofmelbourne.;) This Lovell Chen beauty, presented by Milica Tumbas, reviewed the complexity and flexibility offered by #EnerPHIt. #iphc23

Followed by our own @naphnetwork’s Michael Ingui, covering his @NYPassiveHouse #Brownstone rescue’s, one gorgeous staircase after another. [Damn, I love those treads!] #iphc23. (Shout out to his @PHAccelerator for their excellent coverage.)

The #enerPHit project that signaled China’s arrival on the global #Passivhaus stage was unfortunately hijacked by a sponsor (& turned into an infomercial... ugh!) Fortunately for me, I’d visited the architects in Beijing, prior to #iphc23, for a delightful lunch & preview.

When you see this level of #enerPHit design excellence of an historic Chinese courtyard home, you know the kids are all right! #iphc23 (Check out their website for more mouthwatering images: https://www.hxp-architekten.com/1 ) #rammedearth

Last content session: 2D - Ventilation. This was the only session I wasn’t impressed with. Let’s just say PHI’s new guidance on kitchen hoods has a long way to go and is not up to their usual standard...(Happily the expo showed me the Chinese may sort this soon.) #iphc23

A fun ‘California’ moment happened during the Training track I was honored to moderate: the lights went out! No trouble to the resourceful @EmuEnrico. He carried on presenting off his laptop, stopping periodically to let his excellent translator (1of many)have his turn... #iphc23

[Time for another break....] *off to look for the Uighur dumplings we took on this hike around ‘Heavenly Lake’ outside Urumqi. #iphc23

Now to Chapter 3: the #iphc23 Expo/Trade show, [ @lloydalter @energysmartohio & @ShellyMBoulder may want to sit in on this segment,] at which I had to remove all vestigial notions of Chinese industry as ‘predatory copiers.’ (Why copy if you can build better?)

Row upon row of GREAT products greeted the +100k visitors to this trade event, many designed specifically for the Chinese #IAQ market. New ventilation systems captured my attention & envy, integrating H/ERV’s with heat pumps to offer fully conditioned fresh, filtered air. #iphc23

I was quite taken with this slick ERV+air source heat pump + zone controller + 4-part monitoring system, quite aptly named ‘Wonderful.’ This assemblage pulled together elements specifically customized for Chinese #Passivhaus (PM2.5 filters + CO2 monitoring.) #iphc23

It’s recovery core apparently uses a “polymer graphene modified nano-hydrophilic membrane” and vacillates between an American and German “EC frequency conversion stepless speed control fan.” (Pics & words from brochure.) #iphc23

Not sure if it is installed anywhere yet, but damn, I want this kit in ALL my projects here in California! (Plus we now need the pm 2.5 monitoring.) #iphc23

Many manufacturers offered full spectrum #Passivhaus product lines: windows, insulation, air sealing, thermal bridge connectors AND recovery ventilators. (No business left unmet.) #iphc23

The Europeans were also still here in force (and clearly have been doing business in China for a while,) showing full booths staffed by their Chinese distribution partners. #iphc23

A few window booths caught my eye: these fire-proof #Passivhaus frames and those artfully displayed cork-insulated frame options. #iphc23

More exterior window blinds for solar control than this Californian has ever seen in all of LA, ever, showed up at #iphc23 expo. (Roll on the imports from China, since our North American window industry still hasn’t figure this out yet.)

I was so relieved (and sad) to find just one US manufacturer in the entire #iphc23 expo: thank you and huge applause to @retrotec! (If this is all we got for export, our US industry has a lot to work on...)

It was the closing plenary that drove home the juggernaut unleashed by the Chinese entering the global #Passivhaus market. Wave after wave of new product certifications were handed over, making it hard to distinguish between them. #iphc23

One window did stand out though, and it was notably rewarded via the 2019 Innovation Prize. This ‘All Climate 126’ frame easily morphs from warm to arctic, using the same basic profile. It’s pure product design genius (so simple, yet so obvious.) #iphc23

The projects receiving certification were also overwhelming, dwarfing any #Passivhaus we’ve seen anywhere else. Ever. Just ONE project was 330 000 m2 (that’s 3,552,090 sf!!!) #iphc23

At this stage I was exhausted, as I am now. I’ll pick up this thread and close with the editorial part tomorrow. *[Images from my walks around Beijing, pre- & post- #iphc23]