BSEE ENERGY MANAGEMENT
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In April next year, the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard (MEES) Regulations will apply to all new domestic and commercial lettings.
Alan Hickman, Managing Director at Carlo Gavazzi UK, explores what's in store and how commercial landlords can make cost‐effective, easy‐to‐implement energy efficiency improvements through building automation, controls and metering.
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IT’S ALL ABOUT MEES Getting smart with energy
pril 1, 2018, sees the long-awaited introduction of the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard (MEES) Regulations,
as the government moves to improve the energy performance of some of the least energy- efficient properties in England and Wales. Landlords, and that includes those in both the commercial and domestic sectors, with properties rated F or G on Energy
Performance Certificates (EPCs) will need to take action.
Under the regulations, more formally known as The Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015, it will become unlawful to rent out property that does not meet a minimum EPC rating of E unless landlords have made all possible cost-effective energy-efficiency improvements. Any properties below this rating will be deemed ‘sub- standard’. The regulations will be introduced from the following dates: u1 April 2018: it will be an offence to let a sub-standard property – both commercial and residential. This will apply to lease renewals, lease extensions and overriding leases alike u1 April 2020: it will be an offence to continue to let a sub-standard residential property, including all leases u1 April 2023: it will be an offence to continue to let a sub-standard commercial property, including all leases. By increasing the energy efficiency of our building stock, the government aims to increase energy security while supporting growth and jobs in the green construction industry and the supply chain for energy efficiency products.
‘ One technology
area that is proven to be cost‐effective and to offer paybacks substantially shorter than seven years is building automation and controls. According to the Building Research Establishment, controls are the easiest and most cost‐effective solution for saving energy in buildings.
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The move is likely to have a massive impact on the commercial sector. Research figures from 2014 show that 19% of EPCs in England and Wales are currently rated F or G. The office sector was found to have the highest proportion of sub-standard units, with 23% rated F or G, and 18% rated E. London postcodes represented the highest concentration of these sub- standard ratings, which was true across all sectors. Financial penalties for non- compliance range from £5,000 to £150,000 per commercial unit and in all instances non-compliance will be published. As such, it is in a property owner’s best interest to adhere to the new regulations.
commercial landlords
The government has recently published guidance on the steps commercial landlords will have to take to meet the MEES requirements. One area of contention is likely to be the issue of whether a property is exempt because energy efficiency improvements are not ‘cost effective’. For MEES, ‘cost-effective’ broadly means an improvement that offers payback within seven years. It is likely to lead to some commercial landlords seeking to prove that energy efficiency improvements identified in a
22 BUILDING SERVICES & ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER AUGUST 2017 Guidance for
property’s EPC report are not cost- effective. Landlords will need a written report from a ‘relevant person’ to support this or three quotes from ‘relevant installers’ to show that the measures will not pay back in less than seven years.
One technology area that is proven to be cost-effective and to offer paybacks substantially shorter than seven years is building automation and controls. According to the Building Research Establishment, controls are the easiest and most cost-effective solution for saving energy in buildings. Lighting controls are a good example. The Carbon Trust states that up to 40% of a building's electricity use is accounted for by lighting. By dimming or switching off lighting when there is nobody in a room, occupancy sensors can reduce electricity use by 30%, says the Carbon Trust. Even more impressive are daylight sensors: adjusting the artificial lighting according to the amount of natural light in a room using daylight sensors or photocells can reduce electricity use by up to 40%.
Control solutions
Despite the obvious benefits, clients and building occupiers have failed to exploit advanced control solutions, says the BRE, because many of the innovative technologies they employ are perceived to be overly technical and complex to operate. This, when coupled with a lack of information on the subject, has resulted in a poor uptake of control technologies and a subsequent failure to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of buildings and to provide a better environment for occupants. Simple two-wire bus solutions such as Carlo Gavazzi’s Dupline system offer a cost-effective means of improving the poor take-up identified by the BRE, reducing energy consumption and improving occupant comfort. Two- wire bus technology significantly simplifies the field level wiring, eliminates expensive wiring home runs and saves money on wiring and installation costs when compared with traditional solutions.
Any controls strategy needs to be backed up by data gathered from an effective monitoring system to transform the way a building is run. Re-commissioning and optimisation of a building management system (BMS) to reflect a building’s current and actual usage can reduce a building’s CO2 emissions by up to 20%. Metering data will provide
visibility of excessive consumption and identify opportunities for savings through simple BMS strategy adjustments that doesn’t involve large capital expenditure.
Metering
Metering in itself does not save energy. It is action taken as a result of installing meters and using the information that can achieve quantifiable energy savings. Metering should be designed to facilitate performance
benchmarking as detailed in CIBSE’s
uCarlo Gavazzi’s WM20‐96 Smart Power Analyzer offers faster communications for building automation networks – all in a compact plug‐and–play modular format that streamlines installation and simplifies inventory management.
TM46 and Guide F. To do that, data needs to be exported to a user-friendly interface where graphical displays are engaging, educational and meaningful.
If this is done correctly, the data can be interrogated by the user – be it a building owner, occupier or facilities manager – to identify baseline consumption and benchmark against similar building types, to identify BMS strategy errors, plant operation conflicts, automate reporting and, importantly, assess return on investment of renewable technology introduced or CAPEX projects such as plant replacement and lighting upgrades. It is imperative that users act on the data and develop a system of continuous improvement. Buildings already represent 50% of global electricity consumption and, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA), that figure is going to jump by 80% due to rapid urbanisation over the next 25 years. The IEA argues that there is massive potential for improved energy efficiency in buildings. It says that up to 82% of energy efficiency measures remain untapped in buildings today. Meters unlock that potential and provide a powerful management tool that will reduce operating costs and CO2 emissions to deliver greener buildings.
The building services and energy management sector can expect to benefit widely from the introduction of MEES. With easy-to-implement, cost- effective solutions such as Dupline, backed up with an effective metering and monitoring strategy, Carlo Gavazzi aims to play a big part in helping commercial landlords to improve their energy efficiency, cut carbon and reduce fuel bills.
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By increasing the energy efficiency of our building stock, the government aims to increase energy security while supporting growth and jobs in the green construction industry and the supply chain for energy efficiency products.
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www.carlogavazzi.co.uk VISIT OUR WEBSITE:
www.bsee.co.uk
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