Skip to content
  • NSW-first CPD, built by a practising builder
  • Instant PDF certificates
  • Unlimited assessment attempts
  • 12 points a year, sorted
  • 15% off your first order — get your code
  • Content aligned to the NCC 2022
(02) 8006 5827 Log in Get started
NSW · 3 points

Passive Design in Construction

Making the climate do the comfort work: orientation, glazing and shading, thermal mass, insulation and airtightness, and ventilation — with climate-specific guidance for Australian conditions and the physics explained in plain language.

  • Sustainability
  • Phone-friendly, progress saves as you go
  • Assessed — unlimited attempts
  • PDF certificate on completion

Buy this course · $49.00 or save with a points pack

Passive design is the part of a house’s comfort that costs nothing to run. Orientation, glazing, shading, thermal mass and ventilation decide how much work the air conditioner has to do for the next fifty years, and most of it is locked in before a footing is poured. Builders inherit those decisions and are the ones who make them real, or quietly undo them.

This course covers the principles and then the execution. Orientation and the sun angles that make eaves work in summer and not in winter, glazing selection and shading, where thermal mass helps and where it is a liability, insulation and airtightness as a system, and ventilation strategies including cross-flow and stack effect. It is climate-specific rather than generic, which matters across NSW where a coastal Sydney house and an inland one need different answers.

It is filed under the NSW Sustainability CPD topic and earns points at the 1-point-per-hour tier under the NSW scheme.

Making the climate do the comfort work: orientation, glazing and shading, thermal mass, insulation and airtightness, and ventilation — with climate-specific guidance for Australian conditions and the physics explained in plain language.

You'll learn: Apply passive design principles — orientation, shading, mass, envelope and ventilation — to deliver comfortable, low-energy homes suited to their climate zone.

  • NSW: 3 points (Sustainability)

What’s inside

  1. About this course
  2. Introduction
  3. Part 2
  4. Part 3
  5. Building form, orientation, and zoning
  6. Building form, orientation, and zoning (continued)
  7. Fixed shading and solar control (geometry you can trust)
  8. Passive cooling: ventilation, heat rejection, and thermal mass
  9. Moisture, Condensation & IAQ
  10. Moisture, Condensation & IAQ (continued)
  11. Materials and thermal mass (and phase change materials)
  12. Roofs, walls, and ground: assemblies that work
  13. Passive design in hot-humid climates
  14. Cost, value and phasing

Plus 3 knowledge checks and an assessment at the end.

Reviewed by a NSW building practitioner.

Buy this course — $49.00

Doing your full renewal?

At this course's rate, 12 points costs about $196.00. The 12 CPD Points pack is $169.00 — save $27.00, and spend the points on any courses you like.

See the point packages →

Already have an account? Log in and your points balance shows here.

Disclaimer

The information provided in this course has been prepared using best endeavours to ensure that it is accurate, current and relevant at the time of publication. However, building legislation, regulations, standards, codes, policies and their interpretation may change over time and, in some circumstances, may be subject to interpretation or vary depending on the specific circumstances of a project.

The information provided is intended as general educational guidance only and should not be relied upon as a substitute for project-specific professional advice or verification.

Builders, contractors and other industry professionals are encouraged to independently verify the applicable requirements for each project, including the relevant legislation, regulations, standards, approvals and authority requirements, having regard to the specific site, building, construction method and circumstances.

PointCPD makes no representation or guarantee that the information provided will be applicable to every project or circumstance and recommends that participants seek appropriate professional or regulatory advice where clarification is required.

Questions about this course

Who is this course for?

Licensed NSW builders and supervisors who want to understand the design decisions arriving on their plans, and builders who advise clients at the pre-design stage.

Do I need a design background?

No. It is written for the builder, from the site and construction side, not for the drafting side.

Does this course count toward my NSW builder CPD?

Yes, as interactive learning on the approved Sustainability topic from a provider with industry expertise, at the 1-point-per-hour tier under the NSW scheme.

How does it relate to BASIX?

Passive design is how a house meets its thermal comfort target economically. BASIX Essentials covers the certificate and its commitments; this course covers the design thinking behind them.