Accredited Energy Assessors
THE ENERGY PERFORMANCE OF BUILDINGS DIRECTIVE
(EPBD)
Are you complying?
Part L -
Conservation of fuel and power
Overview
The legal
framework and Approved Documents for Part L (Conservation of fuel and power)
were last revised by amendments that came into effect on 6 April
2006. The changes brought into effect:
New energy
performance requirements
Amendments of
Regulations:
- the Building Regulations 2000
- the Building (Approved
Inspectors etc.) Regulations 2000
The Government
is committed to reducing global warming by cutting the emission of greenhouse
gases. Almost half the carbon dioxide produced in the United Kingdom
derives from the burning of fossil fuels to provide energy for heating,
lighting, ventilating and air-conditioning
buildings.
The revised Part
L of the Building Regulations seeks to improve the energy efficiency of all
buildings. For existing buildings, including historic buildings, this means
reducing heat losses - particularly through windows - and also means introducing
much higher standards of insulation.
Part L, SAP and
SBEM
assessment
SBEM (Simplified
Building Energy Model) is a Government-defined process in accordance with Part L
Building Control Regulations.
Parlec Energy
can provide calculation of the energy performance of existing and new
commercial/industrial/retail buildings.
Energy
Performance Certificates
Overview
Buildings are
responsible for almost 50 per cent of the UK's
energy consumption and carbon emissions.
Communities and
Local Government has introduced measures in England and Wales to improve
the energy efficiency of our buildings, including:
1. introducing
energy performance certificates (EPCs) for properties providing A-G efficiency ratings
and recommendations for improvement
2. requiring
public buildings to display energy certificates (DECs)
3. requiring
inspections for air conditioning systems giving advice and guide for boiler
users
Since October
2008 all properties - homes, commercial and public buildings - when bought,
sold, built or rented need an EPC.
Larger public buildings also need to display an energy
certificate.
What does an assessment for an EPC involve?
An accredited energy assessor needs to visit a property to conduct
an energy assessment for an existing building. During the assessment they
collect information on the property, which includes details of its dimensions,
construction and heating/hot water provision.
The time taken to perform an energy assessment will vary according
to the size and nature of the property. Because of the wide variation of
commercial buildings, any form of 'average time' would not be
meaningful.
This information is fed into the approved software programme which
produces the EPC and recommendation
report. The energy assessor will then record the certificate onto a national
register via his or her accreditation scheme and provide the seller, or
prospective landlord with a copy. The certificate is then ready to be given to
new building owners or made available to prospective buyers or
tenants
Display Energy Certificates
Overview
Display Energy Certificates (DECs) show the actual energy usage of
a building, the Operational Rating, and help the public see the energy
efficiency of a building. This is based on the energy consumption of the
building as recorded by gas, electricity and other meters.
The DEC should be clearly displayed at all times and clearly
visible to the public. A DEC is always accompanied by an Advisory Report that
lists cost effective measures to improve the energy rating of the
building.
Display Energy Certificates are only required for buildings with a
total useful floor area over 1,000m 2
that are occupied by a public authority and institution
providing a public service to a large number of persons and therefore visited by
those persons. They are valid for one year. The accompanying Advisory Report is
valid for seven years.
The requirement for DEC's came into effect from 1 October
2008.
What does an assessment involve?
The energy assessor gathers information about the building
including location, energy consumption, building area and occupancy and may use
data previously collected about the building. However produced the assessor is
responsible for ensuring any recommendations are both appropriate and
representative of the building. The assessor also has the option of producing
recommendations from either a walk around or desk based
survey.
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