Innovation

CSR’s continued investment in research and development through our Innovation team focusses on whole of building performance across the residential and commercial construction sectors.

The CSR Innovation team have developed tools and solutions to deliver higher performance to buildings, our focus has been to not only improve thermal performance but to optimise acoustic control, moisture management and ventilation for a more pleasant and efficient building.

Using the principles of Building Science our innovation centre is developing products and systems right across our portfolio. Our knowledge of Building Science and the way in which buildings behave under varying conditions is extensive yet continues to grow through our research projects and partnerships with leading building research centres.

Some recent research projects include topics such as: daylight & glazing, moisture management & mould control, ventilation strategies & sizing of air conditioners, comfort indicators for occupants, and energy efficiency

With ten years of energy efficiency standards included in the Building Code and National Construction Code, we are now building higher performing, more comfortable, contemporary homes and buildings – however there is still much to do.

CSR is helping drive change in design and material use to enhance the energy efficiency, comfort and performance of homes and buildings by:

• Continuing research in sustainable housing at CSR House, an 8-star state-of-the art research centre in Western Sydney
• Expansion of Bradford Energy Solutions providing lower energy bills to business and homeowners
• Innovative product development across the portfolio including Optimo underfloor insulation, Monier solar roof tiles and Hebel powerfloor

CSR House

As part of our commitment to the Australian building industry, we established the CSR House project to improve the knowledge surrounding the choice and use of building materials used in a typical family home.

The primary aim of the CSR House project was to design and build an attractive 8 Star energy efficient home as inexpensively as possible. Objectives included: 

• To identify inefficient building processes for further optimisation research
• To conduct ongoing operational research on building performance
• To showcase CSR’s innovative product range

This episode of the CSR House video series demonstrates the use of insulation in the project. A well designed and insulated home will be comfortable all year round and cut your heating and cooling bills significantly. This not only reduces greenhouse gas emissions, it's part of ensuring you create a healthy home. Insulation is a vital part of an efficient building envelope which improves your air quality and even helps with acoustics.

Click here to view the CSR House project on YouTube.