It is a great delight to see the most essential of buildings, the house, awarded the Stirling Prize.
房屋设计很少受到庆祝，但房屋几乎影响着我们生活的各个方面，并且与我们的身心健康有本质上的联系。用法官的话来说，戈德史密斯街的房屋代表了“以其最纯洁，最环保和社会意识的形式的高质量建筑”。他们是“适度的杰作”。
And while the aesthetics have been lauded, as much weight has been given to the sustainability of the project.
这些房屋已建造为Passivhaus标准，该标准考虑了屋顶的街道和俯仰的方向，以最大程度地利用冬季阳光以及包括低能量加热系统的能量。但重要的是，建筑物的结构主要增强了房屋的性能。
UK housing
在英国,我们有更多之旅sustainable homes and in 2006 a ten-year target to zero carbon homes was established. Although the coalition government scrapped the Zero Carbon Policy in 2015, the political pendulum has swung back and the UK government is now committing to “world-leading levels of energy efficiency”.
To support the now legally-binding target to bring all its greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050, the UK government has committed to introducing the Future Homes Standard in 2025 so that a home built to the standard will have 75% lower carbon emissions than one built to current energy efficiency requirements.
朝着这一点的第一步是对建筑法规的提议，其织物标准非常高（通常具有三重玻璃和墙壁，天花板和屋顶的最小热量损失），并有可能安装低和零碳技术。
Passivhaus-结构工程师的领域
One way of achieving these targets is by adopting the Passivhaus standard. Originating in Germany, Passivhaus is an example of the industry consensus that a reduction in energy consumption is delivered through high quality, thermally efficient materials and strict airtightness requirements.
但是，尽管注册的Passivhaus房屋的数量很少，只有209个英国注册的住宅项目，但通过设计建筑面料的设计增强建筑绩效的概念已嵌入房屋建筑中 - 结构性的领域，而不是机械工程师。
Structural engineers must necessarily integrate complex architectural requirements into the structure and continually innovate with new materials and products.
尽管房屋在戈德史密斯街上的“传统”外观，但结构元素将与those used in the traditional housing of the past.
Engineering innovation in house building
在有关现代建筑方法（MMC）的对话之外，对房屋设计的持续和持续创新的关注很少，部分是由结构工程师领导的。示例包括：
Insulated, suspended ground floors- ground floors that are laid with a gap between the floor and the ground beneath and incorporate high levels of insulation to prevent heat loss.
Engineered timber joists- where upper floors would be traditionally built with solid timber beams, modern homes are often built using timber I-joists (similar to the shape of a steel beam) or a combination of steel and timber to form stiff but lightweight floors.
Prefabricated trussed rafters——木材屋顶elements that are manufactured offsite and reduce the amount of carpentry required on a construction site.
多层砌体- 多层结构，包括热绝缘和越来越复杂的组件，将它们绑在一起。这些设计为防风雨，防止传热，提供防火性并抵抗声音变速箱。
All were "Modern Methods of Construction" at one point. The design of homes, driven by regulatory change, will continue to evolve and require the specialist skills of the structural engineer.
Primary energy and embodied carbon
最后的一点是，建筑法规的拟议更改将像Pastivhaus目标一样，将原始能源用作主要绩效指标 - 这是房屋使用的衡量能源消耗（以kWh）的衡量标准。乘员。
While the operational performance of homes is important, engineers should not lose sight of the value of the assessment of embodied carbon.
It's inappropriate to use materials, systems or technologies that generate large volumes of carbon in their manufacture, transport and erection. It remains important to make design decisions that incorporate this metric.
许多结构工程师精通此评估，在我们的房屋设计中继续考虑体现的碳是明智的。