SPECIAL FOCUS NEWS
insideindustry T
he government’s strategy for spending up to £2.5bn on improving the energy efficiency of homes and public sector buildings has been given a cautious welcome by the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA).
The Association, whose members play a key role in thousands of building improvement projects, said the investment could be an important step towards meeting energy security and carbon reduction goals, but only if it was focused on the long-term performance of buildings and not confined to one-off installations. The funding was announced last September but the government has now published details of how £630m will be spent through its Home Upgrade Grant (HUG) for privately owned properties, and £780m via the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, for homes owned by local authorities and other social housing providers. Social housing will also benefit
from a further £1.1bn of match funding from local authorities, social housing providers and charities. The government believes its scheme will provide energy efficiency improvements for 115,000 homes with an EPC rating of C or lower and will support 20,000 construction and home retrofit jobs.
A further £409 million will be spent through the Public Sector
Decarbonisation Scheme divided between 114 English public sector bodies aiming to improve the energy efficiency of hospitals, schools, universities, museums, and leisure centres. This is part of the UK’s commitment to reduce emissions from public sector buildings by 75% by 2037. The funding will be available
from April for measures including insulation of lofts and walls, new windows and doors and draft proofing measures, as well as the installation of heat pumps and solar panels. “This is significant and important funding,” said BESA’s technical director Graeme Fox. “It could make a huge difference to the overall performance of the built environment, but only if the measures have a whole lifecycle focus.
“It is not enough to carry out one-off installations. We must look at how any retrofit measures are maintained and serviced throughout their lifetime, so they continue to meet their potential for long-term energy and carbon savings. “This will also require a major step up of investment in training and recruitment to ensure we have a suitably competent workforce capable of taking on this considerable challenge,” said Mr Fox.
46% of UK housing has an EPC
rating of C or above, up from 9% in 2008 – with 66% of social
housing said to meet that standard, according to government figures. Legislation requiring all homes to achieve a C rating by 2035 is also under consideration.
D
ata from the Building Controls Industry Association’s (BCIA) latest Market Information Service (MIS) report has estimated that the Building Energy Management System (BEMS) sector is now worth around £835.8M to the UK economy. The new total represents an
increase of 8.0% from the 2021 figure, and the BCIA believes the sector will be pivotal to the Government’s decarbonisation agenda, with building controls playing a fundamental role in realising a carbon neutral built environment. BCIA Graeme Rees commented:
“The 2022 full year results saw the highest set of figures recorded to date and the opportunities are undoubtedly there for the building controls industry to build from this position of strength.” The MIS report lets BCIA members see trends, market growth and segmentation in the BEMS industry. The latest growth reflects an upturn in the market as estate owners and facilities managers demand greater energy performance and a reduction in energy costs, and reinforces the BCIA’s collective influence in Government policy and the
deployment of building controls by building users and developers. The report also shows that BCIA members accounted for 71.3% of the total market volume, compared to 68.6% in 2021, highlighting the BCIA’s position as the leading association for the building controls industry. Manufacturers’ revenues rose by 7.7%, up to £86.9M, whilst System Installers’ revenues rose by 10.4%, up to £404.9M. The 2022 figures suggest that System Installers have enjoyed increased revenues from installed systems, while Manufacturers have continued to increase their Third- Party Product sales, particularly to System Installers. Mr Rees concluded: “The continuing growth trajectory for the sector is hopefully a sign of growing awareness for the value of building controls in contributing to better management of energy efficiency in buildings. The Prime Minister’s decision to disband the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and replace it with three new departments; the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero; the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology; the Department for Business and Trade, will bring a fresh focus on Net Zero, and bring with it a clearer strategy for positive environmental change. The BCIA looks forward to working with the Government, influencing policy and legislation to help fulfil the decarbonisation agenda.”
8 April 2023 •
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