We’re pleased to announce that Energy House Labs has been awarded £4.84 million from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) to develop a new state-of-the-art solar array at Energy House 2.0.
The new facility will recreate solar radiation inside our climate-controlled laboratory, allowing us to carry out research into how homes can stay cool and comfortable as temperatures continue to rise.
Energy House 2.0 already allows researchers to recreate a wide range of weather conditions, including temperatures from -24°C to +51°C, as well as controlled humidity, rain, wind and snow. The new solar array will add another important element to this capability, allowing us to simulate conditions experienced across virtually any climate around the world.
The funding comes through the latest round of the GMCA Good Growth Fund, which supports investment in innovation, new homes, employment and regeneration across Greater Manchester.
With hotter summers and more frequent heatwaves, understanding how homes respond to high temperatures is becoming increasingly important. The new solar array will allow us to test different approaches in controlled conditions and generate robust data on how buildings can be designed and operated to reduce overheating.
Prof Lubo Jankovic, of Energy House Labs, said:
“This new solar array will enable us to carry out much more accurate testing in extreme conditions as well as simulate climates around the world, giving us accurate measurements and allowing us to really help discover the best ways of keeping our houses as cool as possible under continuing challenges of climate change.”
The new capability will further strengthen Energy House Lab’s role as a facility for testing and researching the performance of buildings in real-world and future climate conditions.