NEWS In brief
BRE TO RESEARCH SOLID WALL INSULATION BRE has been appointed by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) to carry out a 27-month research project aimed at understanding heat losses in the UK’s seven million solid wall homes. The research will look at how
these walls perform before and after insulation, examining the energy use behaviour of occupants and the accuracy of techniques for measuring heat losses.
ALL PARTY GROUP TAKES ON SUSTAINABILITY BARRIERS The All Party Parliamentary Committee for Excellence in the Built Environment (APPG for EBE) has begun gathering evidence for its inquiry into sustainable construction and the Green Deal. It hopes to identify best practice, as well as the challenges and barriers to sustainability in the built environment. Experts will present their
evidence to the APPG for EBE Commission of Inquiry, made up of members of both Houses of Parliament, senior members of the construction professions and key infl uencers and decision makers. The commission will be chaired by Oliver Colvile MP. The Royal Institution of
Chartered Surveyors (RICS), NEES (Natural Energy Effi cient Sustainable) and UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) have already given evidence, with other bodies due to present this month. A report is expected to be published in the summer.
TRAFFIC POLLUTION CAUSES INDOOR AIR QUALITY ALARM New European research revealing that traffi c pollution near busy roads can cause chronic asthma in children should lead to greater investment in indoor air quality (IAQ) measures, according to an air purifi cation pioneer. A study of 10 European cities, published by the European Respiratory Journal, found traffi c pollution responsible for 14% of chronic childhood asthmas. Bengt Rittri, chief executive of Blueair, said research has found that air in homes and offi ces can be much more polluted than outside air.
Diversity panel to open up industry
Chi Onwurah, Labour MP for Newcastle Andy Ford launches diversity panel
Panel aims to break barriers between groups
A new panel to promote diversity in the engineering sector was offi cially launched by CIBSE last month.
The Diversity for Improved Business Performance Panel was introduced by chair Andy Ford during an evening networking reception. The panel aims to break down the barriers to under-represented groups in the building-services industry.
On the night, fi ve guest speakers presented, including Chi Onwurah, electrical engineer, Labour MP for Newcastle upon Tyne and a shadow cabinet offi ce minister, and Loraine Martins MBE, director of diversity and inclusion at Network Rail and former head of equality, inclusion, employment and skills at the Olympic Development Authority.
Incoming CIBSE president George Adams said: ‘The vision is for CIBSE to be the
leader among construction and engineering professionals and the built environment.’ Dr Dorte Rich Jørgensen, former sustainability manager at the Olympics for Atkins, said that diversity and collaboration was needed to tackle global warming. ‘It’s about making sure we challenge our own behaviour and values; are we being energy effi cient? Do we care? That’s absolutely key.’ Tackling diversity was one of
Ford’s four goals during his term in offi ce.
Andy Ford with Dr Dorte Rich Jørgensen (centre) and Loraine Martins (right)
RHI applications held up by meter problems
Poor quality information continues to delay a high percentage of applications for the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI).
Scheme operator Ofgem says close to 40% of applications are delayed by a lack of detail about either system capacities or heat meter eligibility, or the schematics are missing. Many lack all three, a seminar at last month’s Nemex exhibition in Birmingham heard.
Jacqueline Balian, head of operations for the RHI, said around 25% of applications had not provided basic details about their meters. She also pointed out that there are major problems with the quality of some independent reports on metering arrangements (IRMAs) provided as part of the application process.
She said when sites are audited by Ofgem they
often fi nd meters not installed correctly. In some cases users have not kept records of their energy use, which leads to their payments being suspended. ‘This is not fraud – it is just tonnes of error,’ she told the seminar hosted by the Building & Engineering Services Association (B&ES). ‘However,
10 CIBSE Journal May 2013
this is taxpayers money, so we are not going to pay out unless we are satisfi ed. ‘A good quality IRMA will speed up approval,’ added Balian, who urged installers to refer to the Heat Meter Guide produced last year by B&ES. She said applicants were making a lot of basic mistakes in their heat data calculations, which meant their payments were delayed or withdrawn. ‘It is the applicant that loses out, not the installer,’ said Balian.
Ofgem has revamped its RHI website to simplify the application process, but Balian conceded the scheme was ‘very complex’ and end users are usually not engineering experts. Justine Grant of TEAM Energy, authors of the
B&ES Heat Meter Guide, said heating engineers were still struggling to get to grips with metering and monitoring. ‘It is unfamiliar technology and, historically, a very small industry. RHI applicants need to give more attention to getting the right meter supplier. In some cases, a poor quality meter will under-record the amount of heat generated, leading to reduced RHI payments.’
www.cibsejournal.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64