Cambrian College students Ashley Remeikis and Ryan Halk are finalists in a home-design contest that challenges participants to incorporate energy-efficient solutions into the blueprint.
Currently in their third year of the Sudbury school's energy systems technology program, the team is one of 10 finalists in the Home Sweet Home Student Challenge sponsored by OntarioGreenSpec.ca and funded by the Ontario Power Authority's Conservation Fund and Enbridge.
The final round of the contest will take place on April 12.
The task required students to design an energy-efficient home to be built in Kapuskasing. The pair said they wanted to demonstrate that green design is viable even in cold climates.
“Our project proves that you can build an energy-efficient home in rural northern Ontario,” Halk says in a press release.
“We focused on designing a production home that could be built anywhere, rather than a concept home that only fits certain niche markets and customers,” Remeikis adds.
The plan, which the pair submitted in March, includes insulated-concrete forms, south-facing windows to help retain heat in winter, and an overhang to provide shade in summer.
This marks the inaugural year for the competition, which will net the winners a prize of $1,000 each.
Project manager Jill Thompson says the challenge aims to tap into student creativity and share in industry expertise.
“There are fantastic programs offered in our colleges and universities now, from green architecture to renewable energy technologies and eco-marketing,” she says in the release. “This competition moves the brain power around and helps students find good jobs at the same time.”
