October 2025: Moustaches, Robots & Ridiculous Progress
October 17, 2025
The grass needs cutting, the leaves are popping, and the buildings we design are still missing ridiculous opportunities to prevent unnecessary cost and carbon.
This month’s news is out of this world — new features, new faces, rooftop beers, robotic arms, and a heated debate about which co-founder would look best with a moustache (spoiler: one may resemble Pablo Escobar).
So grab your coffee (or something stronger — no judgement) and catch up on how we’re making ηezo even more powerful, while pretending it’s all work.
⚙️ Features, Features, Features
At this point, saying “we’ve made big progress” every month is like saying “the All Blacks like rugby.” It’s just what we do.
1. NECO2 – Carbon data gets an upgrade
BRANZ and MasterSpec NZ have launched the long-awaited NECO2 database — the grown-up replacement for Co2nstruct. It’s cleaner, fresher, and far more usable. We’ve loaded it straight into ηezo so architects and engineers can instantly access verified EPD data inside Revit, SketchUp, or Archicad. No more spreadsheets. No more “where did that number come from?” moments. Suppliers — get on NECO2 ASAP.
2. BRANZ H1 (NZ) – Automating compliance like it’s 2025
Our H1 framework is built, the data’s 90% complete, and we’re now testing and refining with BRANZ’s new Head of Building Research, Daniel Bernal. We showed how ηezo can automate H1 thermal performance and documentation. Dan saw the potential and even flagged other research areas we might support. Beta release expected in November. More time saved. More ROI. Less paperwork.
3. ICE Database (UK) – Crossing the pond
The UK just got its own ηezo flavour. We’ve integrated the ICE database so British designers can measure embodied carbon directly in Revit, SketchUp, and Archicad. Testing wraps in November, with release in December. One tool. Global reach.
4. Material Database – Flexible AF
We’ve overhauled our materials library so users can now build their own rates, add cost or EPD data, or submit it for review via the new Ops Console (working title — naming suggestions welcome). We’ve also added AI-powered search. Soon you’ll be able to type: “Colorsteel cladding on 140mm frame with R2.8 insulation and gib,” and ηezo will pull the matching assembly instantly. No scrolling. No waiting. Just data magic.
5. ηezo Glow-Up
Remember the V-Quest rebrand? Now the app’s getting its own glow-up: brighter visuals, cleaner icons, fewer wordy buttons. Rolling out in November. Even carbon tools deserve a makeover. Screenshot above shows where we’re heading — feedback welcome.
💬 Customer News
We’ve been everywhere this month — live demos, panels, morning teas, and enough webinars to earn frequent flyer points.
Our twice-weekly livestreams across LinkedIn, YouTube, Riverside, and Instagram drew over 350 attendees in three weeks. LinkedIn made hosting… painful, so we’ve moved to once-a-week Thursdays. You’re welcome.
Who’s joining the ηezo journey:
• WSP — trialling ηezo, calling it “easier to use” than a certain global incumbent (rhymes with One-LCA).
• Architectus — caught a live demo and now lined up for trial; one of Australasia’s biggest firms.
• CMP Builders — early contractor involvement pros who said, “You’ve nailed the problem we see on every project.”
• Athena Institute (North America) — partnering to bring their carbon reporting into ηezo for US and Canadian designers.
☕ Out & About
October was caffeine-fuelled and slightly sunburnt (Will in Sydney, definitely not Christchurch).
1. Morning Tea & Heritage Walk
We launched a new kind of demo — part product showcase, part architectural field trip — hosted in the Christchurch Arts Centre. ηezo demo, heritage back-of-house tour, and actual morning tea. Feedback: “Best demo ever, 10/10 would eat scones again.”
2. Australasian EPD Conference
Our CTO William Roberts was personally invited by Barbara Nebel to the Australasian EPD Conference. Conversations covered carbon disclosure, product transparency, and why data quality is the real MVP. He returned buzzing with ideas and 14 new business cards.
3. Australia’s Largest Tech Mixer
Straight from the EPD Conference to Slim’s Rooftop Bar for the TEN13 / OIF / Folklore / Gandel mega-mixer. 500 founders, investors, and startup therapists. Will’s LinkedIn post blew up — Irish expletives included.
4. Retrofit & Adaptive Re-Use Workshop
Barry joined a Massey University panel on adaptive reuse and retrofit. Big themes: incentives, barriers, circular materials, and policy gaps. Key takeaway: retrofit is essential, but policy is lagging.
👨💻 Team ηezo News
🏆 Sustainable Business Network Awards
ηezo is a finalist in the NZ Sustainable Business Network Awards. Users have already achieved the equivalent of planting over 180,000 trees by designing smarter with ηezo. No tree-planting selfies required.
👨🏻 The Great Movember Debate
We’re debating Movember. Eoin and Barry fear Europop flashbacks. Will looks suspiciously good with a moustache. ChatGPT mock-ups were… confronting. Vote now: Magnum P.I., 80s cop, or Victorian strongman.
🦾 Robots, Prosthetics & Pure Curiosity
Barry helped TASKA™ Prosthetics test a next-gen robotic arm. Sensors, twitching fingers, accidental gang signs, and video games ensued. Christchurch continues to quietly punch above its weight in innovation.
🌍 World News
New Zealand halved methane reduction targets and skipped the UN Climate Adaptation Conference — held in Christchurch. Meanwhile, Australia lifted its 2035 target to a 62–70% emissions reduction. One country’s cruising. One’s stuck in neutral.
Global highlights include recycled-glass structural panels, net-zero data centre roadmaps, mass timber growth, district energy expansion, and renewed UN focus on climate tech transfer.
🪶 Closing Thoughts
October has been one of those months — moustache debates, robotic arms, carbon wins, government facepalms, and a smug kangaroo.
Keep sketching, keep questioning, and keep asking “why” when everyone else says “that’s how it’s always been done.”
Until next month — mind yourselves, and don’t be a prick to the planet.
(We learned that language from Will, who learned it from Barry.)
The ηezo crew 🦘🥝