Header image

ENERGY EFFICIENCY | DESIGN FOR PERFORMANCE REACH FOR THE STARS The Design for Performance initiative is partnering with pioneering developers to create a performance-in-use rating scheme in the UK that could transform office design and delivery, as Liza Young finds out N ew buildings in the UK are supposed to be energy efficient, but the regulations intended to achieve this outcome secure efficiency in theory, but not always in practice. With operational energy performance rarely measured, this failure has been invisible, leading to the performance gap between original design intent and how a building performs in use. Design for Performance (DfP) is an industryfunded and backed initiative, established to tackle the performance gap and create a building-rating scheme based on measurable performance outcomes. The project looks to emulate the Nabers Energy Rating and Commitment Agreement that has transformed the prime office sector in Australia (see panel, What is Nabers?). This is not a nice to have, says Sarah Ratcliffe, chair of the DfP executive board, and programme director at the Better Buildings Partnership. The UK property industry desperately needs verification and disclosure of performance in use because, without these, the market cannot drive improvements in performance. Ratcliffe says the UK has been largely operating under the false impression that its regulatory and voluntary standards give a good indication of performance. But these standards measure only design intent, and buildings actual performance is invisible, she adds. Currently, no metric exists to give the market visibility on performance, says Robert Cohen, technical lead at DfP, and technical director at Verco Advisory Services. Whether one building is better than its peers is unknown the market is operating completely blind. Cohen says DfP is attempting to replicate what Nabers has done in Australia, where disclosure of the measured, base building operational rating is mandatory for commercial offices. In the UK, buildings must disclose their Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs), but these are based on theoretical calculations. After a feasibility study and a series of pilot projects (see panel, DfP timeline), the DfP team has secured the commitment of seven pioneer developers to fund the establishment of a Naberslike scheme and apply the Commitment Agreement process to at least one of their projects. They include: Landsec, Lendlease, The Crown Estate, TH Real Estate, Legal and General, Great Portland Estate, and Grosvenor. Ratcliffe says DfP is currently in advanced discussions with Nabers about bringing the scheme to the UK. They will make the scheme WHAT IS NABERS? Australias Nabers office energy-rating scheme targets in-use energy performance of the base building services typically under the control of the property owner, including heating, hot water, ventilation and air conditioning of the whole building, light and power in common areas, and lifts. For new office developments, clients, developers and their teams sign up to and follow a Commitment Agreement to design, construct and manage buildings to achieve agreed levels of in-use performance. 24 December 2018 www.cibsejournal.com CIBSE Dec18 pp24-26 DfP.indd 24 23/11/2018 16:00