The curious turned up at the weekend to see why a Wollongong fibro house, with a clever retrofit, has sparked international attention.
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There was plenty of home-town interest in the energy-efficient humble fibro during a public open day held by the University of Wollongong's Sustainable Buildings Research Centre (SBRC) on Saturday.
The day was aimed at showcasing the best in sustainable design through the features incorporated into the world- class SBRC building, as well as giving the public the opportunity to look through the student Solar Decathlon project, the Illawarra Flame House.
The UOW and Illawarra TAFE won the Solar Decathlon 2013 award, beating 19 other entries from around the world.
The winning team retrofitted a 1960s suburban fibro to make it a net-zero energy user and it is now a permanent fixture at the UOW's Innovation Campus.
As well as looking through the Illawarra Flame House, residents were able to learn how research and innovation could be applied at home.
SBRC director Professor Paul Cooper said the centre's design embodied its mission to meet the challenges of making buildings more sustainable.
He said the visitors were inspired by the latest in cutting-edge research and products on display.
"The SBRC building includes features that enable it to produce more energy than it consumes," Prof Cooper said.
