The Impact of the new Energy Performance Certificate
There's a piece of research from KPMG that concludes that the introduction of energy labelling for buildings will profoundly change the tenant-landlord dynamic.
Professor David Strong's second presentation at the conference details the impact of the new energy performance certificates, following on from the success of a similar energy labelling scheme for the white goods market. The certificate will allow the purchaser or tenant to make a more informed choice about the buildings they occupy.
David observes that there is some confusion in the sector over whether or not some buildings will not be affected by the certificates, although they apply to pretty much every building that is covered by building regulations, with some historical buildings being excluded.
Slide 11 contains a definitive list of buildings in the public sector that will be obliged to display their energy performance certificate and in time this will be extended to buildings such as hotels and supermarkets. The publicly displayed rating will the Operation rating, based on the known energy consumption of the building.
The presentation also details the process behind achieving an asset rating and – in slide 14 – sets out the requirements for independent experts.
Among the main implications of the introduction of energy labelling certificates is the creation of new drivers for implementing sustainable design: the visible energy performance of a building will be closely tied to the brand equity of a building, and should be a reflection of its CSR ambitions. It will also make it more difficult to indulge in what Professor Strong describes as ‘architectural greenwash’, where green design features are cited despite having no bearing on the buildings real-word sustainability performance.
In design terms the certificate is expected to lead to greater integration of passive energy systems including the exploitation of thermal mass, optimised use of daylight and greater use of natural ventilation.
Click on the link on the left of this page to view a copy of this presentation.
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