Services - Energy Performance Certificates
Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs)
The Law
The UK Government introduced the Energy Performance of Buildings Regulation in 2007. This introduced EPCs for the first time and is part of a series of legislation bought in to dramatically improve the energy efficiency of the UK's commercial buildings. These buildings currently contribute 20% of the UK's carbon footprint. A very large proportion.
What is an EPC?
An EPC is a measure of the notional energy performance of a building. The energy rating is expressed on an A to G colour coded barchart scale, similar to those seen on cookers and fridges. The rating is based on a CO2 emission of the building, factoring the building's construction fabric and building services. A report of recommendations accompanies the certificate and sets out suggestions to improve the energy efficiency of the building.
Timing
From 1 October 2008 all commercial buildings on the market For Sale or To Let require an EPC to be in place. The regulations require that an EPC be in place from the first day the building is marketed.
Valid Period
An EPC is valid for ten years. The certificate is available on the UK Government's Landmark database which has full public access.
Responsibility
The legal responsibility to have an EPC in place lies with the organisation who has placed the building on the market e.g. landlord, company seeking an assignment or subtenant. The marketing agent has the duty of care to inform his client that an EPC is required.
Exempt Buildings
The legislation has been very tightly drawn to require almost all commercial buildings in the UK to have an EPC. There are however a small number of situations where a building is exempt, these are as follows;
1. Places of worship.
2. Temporary buildings with a planned use of no less than two years.
3. Detached, self-contained buildings less than 50 sq m.
4. Industrial and agricultural buildings without any heating and where it would be not expected to be installed by a future occupier.
5. Buildings due for demolition. Proof is required for this such as a signed demolition contract.
Non Compliance
These regulations are policed by local Trading Standard officers who can issue penalties for non compliance ranging from £500 to a maximum of £5,000. These penalties can be repeated every 28 days if an EPC is still not prepared.
Our Service
Greenwall Environmental is a nation provider of EPCs covering the UK and Republic of Ireland. We can quickly provide EPCs from a single retail unit on to an entire portfolio of investment properties. We provide a cost effective service for investors, occupiers and their professional advisors. Please click here to receive an immediate quotation.
Display Energy Certificates (DECs)
The Law
The UK Government introduced the Energy Performance of Building Regulations in 2007. This introduced DECs for the first time and is part of a series of legislation brought in to dramatically improve the energy efficient of the UK's public sector building stock.
What is a DEC?
A DEC shows the energy performance of a building based on actual energy consumption. This Operational Rating is shown on a scale from A to G where A is the lowest CO2 emissions (best) and G is the highest CO2 emissions (worst). The DEC is accompanied by an Advisory Report which contains simply advice on how the building can be improved in terms of energy efficiency. A DEC is required for buildings with a total useful floor area over 1,000 sq m that are occupied in whole or part by public authorities and by institutions providing public services. An element of public access to the building is also required to trigger the need for a DEC.
Timing
From 1 October 2008 all public sector buildings requiring a DEC need to display the completed document in a prominent place, clearly visible to the public.
Valid Period
The DEC must be renewed annually and is based on actual energy consumption within the building. This makes the certificate very much a 'living document' and requires occupiers to read their utility meters on the first working day of each month to have the correct data available.
Responsibility
The legal responsibility to obtain and display the DEC lies with the occupier of the public building. In many cases the public body maybe just a tenant of the property but they still have the legal obligation to produce DEC.
Non Compliance
The public bodies that fail to display a valid DEC are liable to a penalty charge from local Trading Standards officers of £500 plus £1,000 for failing have a valid Advisory Report. These penalties will be repeated every 28 days during which the non compliance occurs. Since this is important environmental legislation public bodies run the risk of severe reputational problems for failing to fully comply.
Our Service
Greenwall Environmental is a national provider of DECs covering the UK and Republic of Ireland. We can quickly provide DECs from a single primary school to an entire local Authority's property portfolio. We provide a cost effective service to the public sector occupiers and their professional advisors. Please click here to receive an immediate quotation.
Air-conditioning Inspections for Energy Efficiency (ACI)
The Law
The UK Government introduced the Energy Performance of Buildings Regulation in 2007. This regulation bought in the requirement for commercial buildings to have Energy Performance Certificates and for public sector buildings to have Display Energy Certificates. The regulation also introduced the mandatory requirement for Air-conditioning Inspections. Air-conditioning uses a large amount of grid electricity which gives rises to high CO2 emissions. CO2 is one of the major factors behind global climate change and this has given rise to the need to rapidly improve the energy efficiency of air-conditioning systems across the UK.
What is an Air-conditioning Inspection?
The inspection's sole focus is to seek improvements in energy efficiency. This will result in lower energy bills for the occupier and reduced CO2 emissions. The system is thoroughly inspected by an accredited inspector. Recommendations are then made to improve the operation of the system. We often find that we can recommend no cost or low cost solutions to quickly reduce running costs by at least 10% as a result of our inspection.
Timing
1. For new systems put into service after 1 January 2008, the first inspection must take place within five years of one it was first commissioned.
2. Larger systems with an output greater than 250kW (approx 25,000 sq ft office building) must have been inspected by 1 January 2009.
3. Small and medium sized systems with an output greater than 12kW (approx 2,000 sq ft office or retail unit) must have been inspected by 4 January 2011.
4. If you have taken over control of a air-conditioning system from 4 January 2011 and you have not been given an inspection report, you must ensure that the system in inspected within three months of taking over such control.
5. The inspections must be carried out every five years, as a minimum
Responsibility
The legal responsibility to have the inspection carried out lies with the person who controls the technical functioning of the system. For multi-let buildings, such as offices and shopping centres, this is usually the landlord. For single occupied buildings it is usually the tenant's responsibility. The inspection must be carried out by an independent consultant who recommends cost effective improvements.
Non Compliance
The regulation is policed by local Trading Standards officers and financial penalties will be issued to landlords and tenants who fail to have their air-conditioning systems inspected. Solicitors are starting to request sight of the document before they complete property transactions. Since this is an important environmental legislation companies and organisations could suffer reputational problems for failing to comply.
Our Service
Greenwall Environmental is a national provider of Air-conditioning Inspections covering the UK and Republic of Ireland. We can quickly provide Air-conditioning Inspections from a single retail unit on to an entire portfolio of investment properties. We provide a cost effective service for investors, occupiers and their professional advisors. Please click here to receive an immediate quotation.
BREEAM In-Use
What is BREEAM?
BREEAM stands for Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method. BREEAM is the leading and most widely used environmental assessment method for buildings. It sets the standard for best practice in sustainable design and has become the de facto measure used to describe a building's environmental performance.
What is BREEAM In-Use?
BREEAM In-Use is a new scheme to help building managers reduce the running costs and improve the environmental performance of existing buildings. It consists of a standard, an easy to use assessment methodology and a certification process that provides a clear and credible route map to improving sustainability.
The biggest opportunity to address the UK's environmental impact lies in better management and improvement of existing building stock. BREEAM In-Use has been developed to encourage better building management and targeted investment in existing building stock.
A Three Part Standard
The BREEAM In-Use standard has three parts;
1. Part 1 - Asset Performance
The inherent performance characteristics of the building based on its built form, construction and services.
2. Part 2 - Building Management Performance
The management policies, procedures and practices relating to the operation of the building; the consumption of key resources including energy, water and other consumables; environmental impacts such as carbon and waste generation.
3. Part 3 - Organisational Effectiveness
The understanding and implementation of management policy, procedures and practices; staff engagement and delivery of key outputs.
BREEAM In-Use Summary
BREEAM In-Use is designed to;
1. Reduce operational costs.
2. Enhance the value and marketability of property assets.
3. Give a transparent platform for negotiating building improvements.
4. Provide a route to compliance with environmental legislation and standards such as energy labelling and ISO 14001.
5. Give greater engagement with staff in implementing sustainable business practices.
6. Provide opportunities to improve staff satisfaction with the working environment. With the potential for significant improvements in productivity.
7. Demonstrate your commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
8. Improve organisational effectiveness.
9. Provide a genuine badge of proven sustainability.
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