Does your office need good NABERS?
Sky high energy bills have left energy prices at the forefront of household’s minds. The war in Ukraine, and the effect of lockdown lifting, has resulted in the rising wholesale cost of energy - causing many offices to lose vast sums of money. Is your office building one of these?
Written by
Alice Greville
Graduate Sustainability Consultant
To contact please email:
alice.greville@mainer.co.uk
Source: www.nabers.gov.au (click image for link to article)
Energy inefficient office buildings cost you money.
People are increasingly looking for energy efficient buildings to help them save money. How we measure the energy efficiency of buildings, however, is the first step to address this problem.
One method, which is increasing in prominence, is a NABERS Assessment; here in the UK, it is currently being used for office buildings. In this article, we consequently analyse the significant advantages that NABERS provides, and if there are any barriers to adopting the scheme.
How have we been assessing our office buildings?
Energy Performance Certificates
The Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating system was introduced in 2007; it must be ordered for potential buyers and tenants before a property is sold or rented. It provides a scale from A to G, with A being the most energy efficient, and G being the least efficient grade.
Despite this, EPCs have been found to be ineffective in measuring the actual energy performance of buildings. For example, research conducted in 2016 by the national research and innovation agency, Innovate UK, found that the average non-domestic building uses significantly more energy than predicted at design stage: 3.8 times more, to be precise. Shockingly, only 2% of buildings in the study met the predicted carbon target when in use.
Part L
The other issue is the carbon calculation methodology in Part L of building regulations. This predicts the carbon emissions at the Design Stage; however, it uses a simple methodology based on a ‘notional building’. This hypothetical building is the same shape, size, orientation and end-use as the one being designed, featuring pre-defined characteristics, such as fabric U valves, glazing area, and servicing strategy. Based on these parameters, a carbon dioxide emission rate is subsequently established. The building designer must equal or beat the carbon dioxide emission rate with their design.
However, this approach does not account for the complexities of the modern building services design.
NABERS is a rating scheme, therefore, which helps to address the performance gap created by EPCs and Part L.
Why should Office Buildings be NABERS Certified?
The energy performance gap is closed by measuring the real time data, rather than using a predicted performance based on the building design (which is what is done with an EPC). An EPC certificate can last 10 years, but only requires an assessment every 4 years, thus making the energy measurement less representative of the building’s efficiency in a contemporary context.
Part L, meanwhile, was never intended to be a predictive tool. It allowed people to comply with building regulations and have some flexibility in doing so, but it does not encompass other variables, such as higher occupancy densities, or people working on weekends, for example.
NABERS helps to combat this by providing an energy assessment every year. By providing a yearly assessment, this incentivises incremental performance, and provides a trajectory for how a building can reach net zero.
What benefits does NABERS offer?
Not only does NABERS offer an increase in data reliability, but it additionally has a significant influence on energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. In Australia, for example, offices possessing a NABERS rating save an average of 42% on energy, and, likewise, have a 53% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. NABERS, subsequently, can aid in reducing financial costs associates with energy; meanwhile, it can assist in meeting net zero ambitions.
Regarding this reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, research has found that companies whom value sustainability have an increase in attractiveness and an improved reputation; in essence, this attracts individuals to your company or building more effectively. A result of this is that it can support a higher monetary premium.
Similarly, gaining a NABERS rating can be financially advantageous in other ways. This includes a positive influence upon tenant satisfaction, tenant occupancy rates, and even tenant referral rates – thus creating an advanced return on investment. With an improvement in tenant satisfaction, NABERS can enhance occupants’ health, wellbeing, and productivity, too: it’s a win for everyone.
Additionally, NABERS can be manipulated based on the weather, workspace density, and operating hours, which allows the rating to be more building-specific – rather than being a general assessment. This allows consequential building-specific improvements to be identified, hence providing bespoke information which can be gathered and utilised for distinct building projects.
What are NABERS’ barriers?
Currently, one of the main barriers is the UK’s old building stock. In 2022, for example, the government identified that only 12% of all homes in England had a high energy performance rating, showing the scale of the problem. Another issue relating to the UK’s old building stock is that an effective NABERS assessment requires sub-metres for both electricity and gas, however only some buildings possess these.
Furthermore, although it is likely that buildings will begin to become more and more energy efficient over the coming decades, and, as such, the premium generated may theoretically decrease, NABERS will adapt to the changing contemporary environment.
Source: NABERS UK: Closing the office performance gap on the road to net zero (click to view)
For example, it is likely that NABERS will introduce more stringent energy efficiency measures over time, thus maintaining the competitive advantage that NABERS offers. Indeed, with a small number of buildings presently NABERS accredited in the UK, gaining a NABERS rating will subsequently be an advantageous investment for decades to come.
The fact that the NABERS rating system is renewed annually, and uses real time data, similarly creates a unique selling point – allowing it to stand out strongly in the market, whilst signifying your organisation’s commitment to net zero.
How can Mainer Associates help you with NABERS?
Mainer Associates offers NABERS assessments with our specialist Senior Sustainability Consultant, Chris Stevens-Barnes, who is also our certified NABERS Assessor. We can help to provide a real time audit of your office building, and, similarly, we can provide an indicative performance of your building. So, to see an overall performance of your building – please do get in touch.
To talk to Chris about a NABERS Estimate, NABERS Rating, or how you could improve your NABERS rating, please click the link.
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