Grant: Applied Research Tools and Instruments Grants

Buildings in Canada contribute 15% of the country's greenhouse gas emissions, with space heating being the major factor. Retrofitting existing buildings is key to reducing emissions, improving energy efficiency, and enhancing climate resilience. However, Canada is currently retrofitting less than 1% of buildings annually, a pace too slow to reach its climate goals. More innovative solutions are needed, including new technologies like Digital Twin, to accelerate retrofitting, reduce costs, and support scalable solutions. Commercial buildings, especially in Manitoba's cold climate, are significant contributors to emissions due to heating demands, with heating accounting for about 50% of their energy use. Retrofitting these buildings is essential for energy efficiency, climate resilience, and reducing operational costs. Applied research will help tailor solutions to local conditions and building types. BETAC at RRC Polytech plays a key role in advancing building retrofits through applied research. To enhance its capacity, BETAC requests advanced equipment, including the Sorama CAM for detecting inefficiencies, Nexys LiDAR for precise building assessments, and the TRSYS20 System for accurate thermal resistance measurement. These tools will support BETAC’s ongoing projects, such as the Gordon Bell High School retrofit and heritage building retrofits, improving accuracy and efficiency in retrofit planning. The requested equipment will help reduce risks, improve cost-efficiency in design, and promote innovation by providing detailed data on building conditions. It will also support testing and validating new retrofit solutions in both lab and real-world settings. Furthermore, this equipment will contribute to sustainable housing goals by improving retrofit accuracy, supporting affordable housing projects, and fostering cross-disciplinary innovation among architects, engineers, and researchers.