Task: The owner was planning a 6-story apartment building in Brooklyn, New York built to Passive House standards and wanted to use ICF construction to satisfy energy efficiency requirements in a cost-effective manner.

Challenge: The team needed to design a reinforced concrete wall insulated to R30 with no thermal bridging, while also maximizing living space for tenants within the constraints of a tight urban infill lot. The contractor did not have any previous experience with ICF construction. 

Solution: Utilizing Polycrete’s R-Stak supplemental insulation panels easily raised the R-value to 30 at a minimal cost, while our EPS foam window bucks increased insulation around openings and prevented the typical thermal bridging that occurs with wood and steel bucks. Polycrete also designed a special starter base that eliminated thermal bridging while maintaining perfect alignment at the wall/slab connection. In addition, we staged training sessions to bring the contractor up to speed on ICF building and installation.

Polycrete’s extensive experience with commercial construction and working in tight urban environments, plus our knowledge of and relationship with the NYC construction community, helped navigate project and job site complexities.

Here’s a link to The Brooklyn Home Company’s video on the project.

You can learn more about Passive House Multifamily from the Passive House Institute

PROJECT STATS

Location: Brooklyn, New York

Type: Multifamily Residential

Size: 18,900 square feet (floor)

ICF Use: 12,000 square feet

CONSTRUCTION TEAM

Owner: The Brooklyn Home Company

Construction Manager: iFathom Construction

General Contractor: Nadkos Construction