KJ Tait

It’s been nearly two years since the UK Government consulted on bringing in an In-Use rating scheme for commercial office buildings over 1,000m² through their consultation document ‘Introducing a performance-based policy framework in large commercial and industrial buildings’.  Since then, there has been no movement, despite the industry support behind the NABERS In-Use scheme.

The NABERS In-Use scheme is a big step forward from Display Energy Certificates (DEC) as a) they should only relate to the on-floor HVAC systems and common parts’ energy usage and b) they are agnostic of the actual hours of occupation, unlike a DEC.  We have been working with our Clients to better understand what their NABERS In-Use Rating may be and have been identifying areas for improvement.  These improvements have looked at the following areas:

• Inserting the expected hours of comfort conditions within the lease agreements
• More comprehensive reading of submeters regime with meters clearly labelled in line with the distribution board served
• Operational adjustments to reduce energy consumption
• Capital projects to reduce energy consumption and decarbonise.

We have so far lodged one assessment, however, there have only been three assessments lodged so far.  The industry is keen to see this implemented given the evidence of success in Australia.  The Design for Performance side of NABERS continues to gather pace with seventeen schemes now lodged including one completed by KJ Tait.  We see NABERS and EPC ‘B’ as both being essential to decarbonising buildings and ensuring that our Net Zero Carbon objectives can be met.