Shawn McIsaac

Nope, not doing a dog impersonation here. Before I explain what WUFI is, I think I first need to explain why it exists. For decades, we (building scientists) have been

The building code in NZ is a 100% performance based code. And for people like me, it is awesome. Yes, I said it, it’s an awesome building code. You can

For those of you unfamiliar with the concepts of warm and cool roofs, it has to do with the placement of the insulation layer. In a cool roof assembly (traditional

New Zealand Building Code (NZBC) is familiar to all in New Zealand, but what about another NZBC, a Net Zero Building Code; one world city is already on that path.

We need to intelligently and purposefully consider the impacts of our design and consumer choices, not just follow the herd, latest trend, or excellent marketing. Incandescent bulbs are inefficient sources

The models above show a really simple concept: window frames will conduct heat differently depending on both their material (obvious) and geometry (maybe not so obvious). All three of those

Cyclone Cook is exactly why I get up every morning.  If this “mid-latitude low” lives up to the hype, this type of storm is what engineers design building enclosures to

Kiwi’s love metal roofs. And what’s not to love? Highly durable (50+ years), long track record, cheap, UV resistant, easily installed, many competent installers in New Zealand, and they are

Is there a magic bullet that could be applied to every building facade to improve the chances of success? The same way you consider the structure, the fire protection, the

In Canada, in the 1970’s people started giving a crap about conserving energy in houses (it might be 2020’s before that catches on in NZ). At that time, and in