•The National Eco House Competition •The HCT Eco House •Technologies in the Eco House •Focus on Insulated Concrete Forms •The build process of HCT •Student and staff participation •The monitoring and results phase

1. The National Eco House
Oman
www.icf.ae

4. Contents
• The National Eco House Competition
• The HCT Eco House
• Technologies in the Eco House
• Focus on Insulated Concrete Forms
• The build process of HCT
• Student and staff participation
• The monitoring and results phase

5. “ The National Competition for Eco House Design taps into this rich [architectural
heritage] and the talents of the tech-savvy generation that is our youth ”
“ Through the competition we hope to develop the research and innovative thinking skills
of Oman’s youth and foster awareness of sustainable social and economic development ”
Approximately AED 2 million invested into each project
An Initiative of The Research
Council of Oman

6. Stages of the Eco-friendly House
competition
• Stage I: Proposal and Team Formation Phase
• Stage II: Conceptual Design and Design Development .
• Stage III: Detailed Design and Construction Documentation.
• Stage IV: Construction.
• Testing/Commissioning.
• Final Competition Evaluation.

7. Scoring Criteria
Juried
• Conceptual Design and Development
• Architecture contest
• Engineering contest
• Communications contest
• Sustainability Contest
• Home Office and Appliances contest
(measured and juried)
Measured
• Comfort Zone
• Hot Water contest
• Home Office and Appliances contest
• Energy Balance contest

8. Participating
Universities
Higher College of Technology,
Muscat, Oman

9. Companies involved

10. Sustainable design and
technologies at the Eco House

11. Orientation
•Largest windows on north side away from sun.
•Main entrance door is on North side as well so that the
door and people are shaded as they enter the house.
•This reduces the sunlight that enters the house, and
hence minimises the cooling requirements

12. Insulated Building
Fabric
• Walls using Insulated Concrete Form
Technology
• Ceilings and Floors also insulated
• Double glazed windows

13. Heat Recovery Ventilation System
and Variable Refrigeration AC
System

14. Energy Efficiency
• All appliances are rated at A+++ or A++
energy efficiency ratings
• LED lighting throughout
• Monitoring of all energy consumption
through advanced data and acquisition
system

15. Solar PV and Thermal
• Solar PV array provides electricity during the day time.
• First house in Oman (and the Middle East?) to feed
excess electricity back to the grid.
• Net generation of about 30 KWh/day
• The PV array also acts as an extra layer of shade for the
roof and windows.
• Solar thermal provides hot water for the house.

16. Grey water recycling
• The grey water system is tasked to collect and
filter used water from the lavatory, sinks, shower
and water used in laundry.
• It uses an industrial grade filter to assure the
premium quality of the water.
• The water, then, will be used in watering plants.

17. Green walls and landscaping

18. Focus –
Insulated Concrete Forms

19. Insulate Concrete Forms –
What are they?
ICF’s (Insulated Concrete Forms) are modular units
that are stacked and filled with concrete. The
forms lock together somewhat like Lego bricks and
serve to create a form for the structural walls of a
building.
Acts as formwork and insulation

20. Insulate Concrete Forms – 6
functions in 1
An ICF System can complete six functions in a single
product
1. Form system 4. Air barrier
2. Wall structure 5. Vapor barrier
3. Insulation 6. Interior/exterior finish anchorage

21. The Building Process
1 – Footings
A strip footing foundation is prepared.
Strip footings are generally easier to
setup than the isolated footings found
in traditional construction.
2– Stacking
The forms are stacked on top of one
another like Lego bricks to build up the
walls. Opening for the windows and
doors are accounted for as well.
3 - Rebar
Horizontal rebar is clicked into place
along each course. When the wall
height is finished the vertical rebar is
fed through.

22. 4 - Alignment
The alignment system is setup to
ensure all the walls are positioned
accurately for the concrete pour.
NUDURA has its own bracing system
which can be used.
5 – Concrete Pour
A concrete pump is used to fill the core
of the forms. Once the concrete dries,
the result is immensely strong
reinforced, monolithic concrete wall.
6 – Services and Roofing
The floors and roofing are placed when
the concrete has dried. The service
pipes are chased through the foam of
the ICF blocks.
The Building Process

23. Features

24. Features
Locking Mechanism 4 – Way Reversible Flat Packing

25. All types of buildings are possible ...
• Villas
• Schools
• Multi-Residential
• Healthcare
• Hospitality ....

26. Strong and durable

27. Energy Efficiency
• Insulating U value of 0.24
• Minimal air leakage
• As a result, cooing loads reduced by up to 70%

28. Comparison of building
code wall insulation
requirements
U-Value (W/m2.K)
Dubai Green Building Regulations 0.57
Estidama RE-1 0.32
Estidama RE-2 0.29
Typical ICF 0.24

29. ICFs can contribute towards
earning Green Building
certifications

30. Summary of key ICF
Benefits
• Fast to build
• Strong structure
• Very well insulated for improved energy performance

31. What follows is a
walkthrough of the
build process
Now back to the Villa

32. Floor Plan
• 2 stories
• 3 bedrooms
• 350 Sq.m built up area

33. Ground Floor

34. Day 0 Day 2
Day 4 Day 6

35. Day 10Day 8 Day 10
Day 10 Summary
• 3.4 meter high reinforced
concrete walls
• 150 sq.m floor area
• 10 days

36. Finishing the ground floor
• Concrete drying in walls: 2 – 3 days
• Laying the hollow core slabs for the first floor: 1 day
• Pouring the first floor screed: 1 day
• Total of 15 days work

37. First Floor

38. Day 5Day 2
Day 7 Day 9

39. Day 9
Concrete Pour
Summary
• First floor, 3 bedrooms, 150 Sq.m
• Concrete poured
• Reinforced concrete walls complete
• 9 days

40. Penthouse, Parapet and
Utilities room

41. Summary
• Penthouse with slanted roof
• Parapets and utilities room
• Concrete poured
• 4 days

42. Finished Super Structure

44. 32 Days - Ground Slab to Roof
GF – 15 Days
FF – 13 days
PH – 4 days

45. 32 Days - Ground Slab to Roof

46. MEP Works

47. Applying gypsum board

48. Chasing pipes and conduits

49. Inside the finished house

52. Muscat Municipality officials
visiting the eco house

56. Student Participation
Involved in the design, construction, and operation
Architectural, civil and mechanical students involved, among other

62. University staff heavily involved and
passionate about the project

63. Measuring the results
• Final step of competition is measuring the
results during live operation.
• Realistic living conditions simulated

64. Web Portal

65. Energy Consumption

66. Comfort Levels

67. Refrigerator Loads

68. Scoreboard

69. Links and contacts
HCT Eco House Website: www.hctgreennest.com
Live Results Website: www.omanehdc.com
The Research Council Website: https://home.trc.gov.om
Mona Al Farsi, HCT Project Coordinator: mona.alfarsi@hct.edu.om
Sami El Maameri, ICF Building Materials, Local ICF Supplier, 050 553 9093, info@icf.ae
Equinox Technical Services, Local ICF Contractor, charles@equinox.ae

70. www.icf.ae
THANK YOU

71. www.icf.ae
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