In the Siberian city of Omsk, temperatures sometimes drop as low as -45°C – thermal insulation is a matter of life and death. A few years back, an entrepreneur wishing to build houses in the area purchased construction materials from a Polish company called Izodom. Ordering materials 4,000km away may sound like poor planning, but Izodom happened to specialise in so-called passive constructions, an ideal solution to the punitive Siberian climate. Passive house design refers to ecologically-friendly energy conservation standards, which minimise needs for heating or cooling.