ISSUE 4 | 2020 www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk
ENERGY MATTERS ECO3 adopts PAS 2035 standards
COVID-19 Taking stock Legionella: When is a risk assessment required?
The changing face of training
Energy Matters | Issue 4 | 2020
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Foreword
Martyn Reed Managing Director Elmhurst Energy
This issue of Energy Matters is a little later than scheduled for obvious reasons, but we have timed its publication to coincide with the change in government policy which will allow us to return to a more ‘normal’ way of working.
It is probably a good time to reflect and think about those who lost their lives over the last few months, and for the key workers who risked their own health and wellbeing to serve others. That is not to say that they are the only ones to be impacted; issues such as social isolation, reduced income and redundancy have effected many of us. Whilst we hope that the worst is now behind us, I suspect that 2020 will be a year that is never forgotten and it will be frequently retold to future generations. Elmhurst was fortunate to be able to respond immediately when the Government issued its stay at home policy on 23rd March, closing the office and instructing all staff to work from home with a newly established telephone system.
The health of our staff and supporting members were (and continue to be) our top priorities. I communicated with all members every Friday throughout the crisis, so I won’t repeat everything that we did, but I am most proud of: n
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The letters we wrote to ministers explaining the plight of energy assessor and the need to provide immediate financial support. The guidance we gave to energy assessors on safe working. The free health and wellbeing webinars that we have, and continue to broadcast each week.
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The work we did with MHCLG to produce the guidance that was published for when, where and how assessments could be conducted safely. The financial support we gave members who were temporarily unable to pay their invoices. The changes we made to our procedures to reflect the fact that many energy assessors were either furloughed or without work. The FAQ section on our website which has been kept updated throughout this pandemic.
As we return to work, and the economy recovers, now is the time to look forward.
As I have said already, the uncertainty resulting from COVID-19 and the government's restrictions has undoubtedly caused more stress and anxiety. This was evidenced from my weekly communications to members which, almost without fail, prompted a response from both those that agreed and disagreed with our position. I realise that you can’t please all people at all times but the balanced position we did take was, I feel, the right one. As we return to work, and the economy recovers, now is the time to look forward. In April 2020 the Minimum Energy Efficiency Legislation in
England & Wales was extended to cover existing tenants. Minimum Energy Standards for private rental housing in Scotland was unfortunately delayed, but will still come into force later in the year, meaning landlords will be best advised to act now. Similar legislation for the owner occupied sector in Scotland is under consultation. The PAS 2035 retrofit process, applicable to both the unable to pay (ECO) market and the private rental sector, is gathering momentum, with hundreds of energy assessors using the quieter time to become trained as Retrofit Assessors. For England, Wales and Northern Ireland members, we will soon see a new web-based EPC format, coinciding with the new register going live in the late summer. The changes for Elmhurst are massive but fortunately for most of our members the impact will be minimal, other than how the EPC is presented and delivered. The final EPC design has not yet been finalised and, having seen an early draft, we are trying to suggest improvements. However, in principle, the new solution will be a better catalyst for energy efficiency improvement and that must be a good thing. The pandemic is not yet over and we must all continue to follow government advice and do what we know to be safe. Parts of our industry will recover quicker than others but you can be assured that Elmhurst will be there, supporting members throughout.
I wish you the all the best for the coming months and thank you for your continued membership with Elmhurst.
Martyn Reed Managing Director Elmhurst Energy
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Energy Matters | Issue 4 | 2020
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Contents F E AT U R E
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05 The importance of competency schemes for built environment professionals
12 The changing face of training 14 Measuring the Performance Gap
06 COVID-19: Taking stock 08 ECO3 adopts PAS 2035 standards
16 Elmhurst Promoting Members (since 1995)
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18 Market data 10 Elmhurst launches Manifesto for Growth 11 Legionella: When is a risk assessment required?
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The changing face of training
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The importance of competency schemes for built environment professionals Jason Hewins, OCDEA Team Leader
The construction industry is changing and as buildings become more efficient and complex it is increasingly important to take advice from specialists with proven competence. Having been active within the built environment for 27 years, Elmhurst believes that as the regulations change and become more stringent, building owners and developers will seek the services of competent professionals who can assure and measure the quality of their buildings, as well as their buildings’ elements. For this reason, Elmhurst has been developing a range of competency based training and schemes which complement the energy calculation services that members already provide. Stuart Fairlie, Technical and Operations Director at Elmhurst comments: “Our competency schemes have been developed in order to prepare our members for the future. With the government keen to make homes more energy efficient and reduce fuel poverty, there will be more demand for professionals who can assure the quality of buildings through value added services. All of Elmhurst’s competency schemes are fully supported by our technical teams and provide access to our dedicated members’ area which houses online software and reporting tools.”
Some of our most popular competency schemes Psi-Value The Psi-Value competency training course and scheme is popular amongst new build assessors, as they can use what they learn on the course to calculate their own Psi-Values, giving them greater flexibility when achieving compliance with regulations (something that will become increasingly sought after as they become more stringent). At the beginning of the year, our Psi-Value training course was split into two, so members now have the option to model junctions in 2D and/or 3D, depending on the level of service they want to provide.
Legionella Risk Assessment Elmhurst’s Legionella Risk Assessment scheme remains one of Elmhurst’s oldest competency schemes, having been introduced back in 2015. Those who have undertaken Elmhurst’s training will have the relevant knowledge to assess the risk of legionella bacteria within domestic water systems. Surveyors and Energy Assessors will typically add this service on to their existing domestic EPC and home survey services. Elmhurst’s Legionella scheme comes with the added benefit of mobile software for professionals to use while on site, as well as free pay-perclick insurance.
More information about all of Elmhurst’s competency training and schemes can be found at: www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk
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On 13th May 2020 the Prime Minister announced that the construction and housing markets in England were to restart. Recently similar announcements have been made by the governments of Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales, all with different dates and different conditions. It seems that politicians and businesses are both finding the concept of coming out of “lockdown” significantly more complex than going in. Now is perhaps a good time to reflect on what has happened over the last 3 months and to consider what we can learn from our experiences. Reflecting back to when we held our very successful Scotland conference on 10th March 2020, Covid-19 was certainly in the news, but I don’t feel any of us believed the impact it might have. We enjoyed record attendance and the only indication of things to come was the awkwardness we felt introducing ourselves with the bumping of elbows. And then we entered lockdown.
The effects Market volumes dropped significantly over the first two months of lockdown, with EPC lodgements about 85% to 90% down. Since MHCLG restarted the housing market on the 13th May RdSAP lodgements in England have risen quickly, and as we near the end of June, are almost 90% of what we might expect. The other strands, and countries are also recovering but at a different, and generally slower pace. Perhaps now is a good opportunity to start thinking about the future and consider whether there is anything good to be learnt from what we have all experienced. I have considered what has changed in my life and identified the things I would like to retain.
IN FOCUS www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk
COVID-19 Taking stock
Martyn Reed, Managing Director
Health, safety and the environment are important For many years a person’s, company’s and even a country’s success and security has been measured in purely financial terms and now one little virus has demonstrated how vulnerable that model has become. Without our health, (and for us involved in energy efficiency assessment, that can mean air quality, carbon emissions, global warming and overheating,) we have no security. Learning point: The environment is very important.
Keeping in contact You only really miss something when it’s gone. Whilst online software such as Skype and Zoom are great at keeping family, friends and colleagues connected in the long term, and to meet new people, there is no real substitute for face-to-face communication. Learning point: Relationships are critical and creating them is easier when we meet in person.
Most of us can work from home Many energy assessors already work from home and therefore there has or will be little change. But for those of us who are normally office based, the experience of working from home for more than a day or two at a time was a shock. I did find that although the technology was brilliant, many business processes are based on incidental communications (such as passing each other in the corridor, or waiting for the kettle to boil), meaning that electronic communication can become rather functional. Learning point: Working from home can be made to work. It will be a good to retain flexibility for both the work/life balance.
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Now is perhaps a good time to reflect on what has happened over the last 3 months and to consider what we can learn from our experiences.
The future is bright
Doing energy assessments differently The crisis required Elmhurst and others to think outside the box. One of the most challenging questions that has been posed relates to how we might be able to undertake assessments during an extended lockdown. Over the last 27 years Elmhurst has gained an extensive understanding of energy assessment, including what happens internationally. We know that assessments require a competent, accredited energy assessor to visit the property to observe, record and evidence features of the building required to calculate its energy performance. Whilst it will always require a visit there may be opportunities to save time on site:
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Sharing information between energy assessors, to save time on site. Capture evidence by means other than pen and paper, a mobile device and photographs. Updating recently issued EPCs using data from trusted source.
As an industry we must continually took for ways of working more efficiently whilst preserving the quality of what we do and maintaining confidence in energy certificates. Learning point: Be prepared to think differently.
In the months running up to the current crisis, optimism was running high. With hindsight the economy was going well but there was also a large amount of new legislation being implemented or proposed, including minimum energy efficiency standards for the private rented sector, new building regulations for new build properties and the prospect of minimum standards for the owner occupied sector in Scotland. On the installation side PAS 2035 is now established as the best way to manage retrofit improvement, which is a whole new industry. Elmhurst members are perfectly placed to become Retrofit Assessors and Retrofit Coordinators to deliver projects that are right for the home and the occupant Learning point: Covid-19 was a major bump in the road but once it has passed the climate change challenge and fuel poverty challenges still exist, and need all our skills to solve.
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ECO3 adopts PAS 2035 standards Ellie Dinsdale, Technical Consultant
The Energy Company Obligation (ECO3) is set to run until 2022, delivering energy efficiency measures to domestic properties. Its primary aim is to reduce fuel poverty and carbon emissions. To improve the process of determining ECO funding availability and potential improvement measures the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) released a consultation in 2019, proposing ECO3 adopts PAS 2035 standards. The majority of responses following the consultation supported the proposals for incorporating PAS 2035 into ECO3 funding. This has led to an introduction of the newly adopted standards from 1st January 2020, with an extended transition period for installers to become certified and compliant with PAS 2035 standards ending 30th June 2021.
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Retain an uplift for replacement broken boilers delivered outside the broken heating system cap but will reduce the uplift to 200% where they are not renewable heating measures. Change the way first time central heating (FTCH) measures are treated under the scheme by increasing the lifetime for certain FTCH measures and allow FTCH to be installed in private rented sector EPC Band F&G rated properties.
Applying a 20% uplift to all measures which are completed during the transition period by projects delivered through PAS 2035 and with measures installed by those compliant with the new PAS 2030:2019 standard.
These new changes to the industry will drive the need for skilled retrofit roles within the PAS 2035 framework, capturing a potential 150,000 homes per annum where ECO3 requires a retrofit improvement plan. Minimum government requirements for homes receiving ECO funding mean a secured number of retrofit property improvement plans per year, improving the future security of retrofit roles until at least March 2022.
Require guarantees for all ECO measures, with a minimum length of two years. Guarantees for underfloor and room-in-roof insulation measures to be accompanied by a guarantee of 25 years.
Dedicated government funding of £640 million per year for the retrofit improvement of homes will push the demand for qualified retrofit assessors and coordinators. Further backed by banks and lenders willing to
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provide loans for retrofit energy efficiency measures for the ‘able to pay’ with the requirement that a sufficient quality assurance regime is in place. The determined quality assurance regime is covered by TrustMark and PAS 2035, where property retrofit plans can be submitted to the TrustMark ‘Data Warehouse’ where they can undergo quality assurance. Whilst the Requirements include those from an RdSAP assessment, it must also include an Occupancy Assessment and a Condition Report, requiring additional training and increasing
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More recently, Elmhurst have launched the Retrofit Assessor training online, allowing assessors to take the course from the comfort of their own home.
the demand and skill for competent energy assessors. Besides the role of a Retrofit Assessor, there is also opportunity for many roles within the industry, including Retrofit Coordinators, Installers, Designers and Advisors, all taking a ‘wholehouse’ approach to the retrofit of energy efficient measures in homes. For the purposes of ECO3, this will mean energy efficiency measures will be more suitable to what is currently available for the property but also the condition of the properties assets and tailored measures for the occupants, ensuring the funding available is spent on the most appropriate improvements.
Elmhurst has been involved in the design of the new PAS 2035 taking into account its impacts on the wider industry. Elmhurst launched its new TrustMark Approved Retrofit Assessor and Coordinator schemes in July 2019 and has run regular training courses to upskill energy professionals ever since. More recently, Elmhurst has launched the Retrofit Assessor training online, allowing assessors to take the course from the comfort of their own home. Managing course progress, undertaking tests and downloading their certificates remotely.
We also offer software and support to these trained professionals with access to the TrustMark Data Warehouse. Our hopes are to push PAS 2035 as a benchmark for energy efficiency measures and work with the industry to provide professionals in these key roles to aid in the delivery of the retrofit process, reducing both carbon emissions and fuel poverty. Creating warmer, more affordable homes to vulnerable groups.
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Elmhurst launches Manifesto for Growth Jonathan Bourke, Scotland Business Development Manager
Elmhurst has released its Manifesto for Growth, establishing proposals for how the UK can achieve its carbon reduction targets.
One of the significant points raised in this year's manifesto is the demand for government to launch a national home retrofit programme, in order for the country to have a realistic chance of achieving net zero by 2050. Published in advance of the Chancellor’s statement on a further economic stimulus, Elmhurst’s Manifesto for Growth outlines the key areas that it wants the government to focus on post-coronavirus, with a bigger commitment to improving the energy efficiency of the existing housing stock at the top of the list. However, it is also warning that much more data on owner occupied homes is essential before jumping in with huge amounts of insulation work and other building improvements. Martyn Reed, Managing Director of Elmhurst Energy, says: “A ‘Great British Retrofit’ programme would create Britain’s biggest, most exciting and most transformative infrastructure project of all time, with significant benefits for our health and the environment, as well as creating a huge boost to jobs, skills and economic recovery. “In particular, there is a massive opportunity in the owner
occupied sector. But at the moment it’s largely unchartered waters. The average tenure of an owner occupied property is over two decades and many of these properties have never been energy efficiency assessed. We estimate that there are approximately 14 million properties in the UK without an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) as they have never been sold or rented out in at least the last 10 years. “This presents us with a huge challenge, as we cannot yet evaluate the resources needed to bring these homes up to a reasonable standard of energy efficiency. Nor can we easily target future financial incentives, such as green finance or tax breaks for better insulated homes, without this essential data. “To kick start a mass retrofit programme, every home should receive an EPC and a plan for whole house retrofit within the next 12 months.”
Elmhurst’s Manifesto for Growth also outlines other measures that could stimulate growth in the energy efficiency market, including finding ways to combine information in asset ratings, occupancy ratings and smart meter data to create the ‘golden triangle’ of assessment that will inform policy on a local and national scale. It has also called for urgent technical updates to SAP and SBEM methodologies to ensure they remain fit for purpose and don’t stifle innovation in new energy-saving technologies, plus measures to close loopholes that perpetuate the ‘performance gap’ in new homes, and the removal of any exemptions that mean some buildings can get away without an EPC at all. You can view Elmhurst’s Manifesto for growth online at: https://www.elmhurstenergy.co. uk/uploads/Elmhurst_Energy_M anifesto_2020.pdf
t: 01455 883 250 • www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk
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Legionella: When is a risk assessment required? Tony Robinson, Technical Consultant
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) makes it clear that landlords have a legal responsibility to ensure the health and safety of their tenants by keeping the property safe and free from health hazards. This includes the proliferation of Legionella bacteria. All hot and cold water systems have the potential to provide an environment where Legionella bacteria can grow. The bacteria can cause a number of illnesses, the most high profile being Legionnaires’ disease, which is a potentially fatal form of pneumonia caused by the inhalation of small droplets of contaminated water. It is therefore important that landlords make sure that the risk posed to tenants has been assessed. The Risk Assessment should be undertaken by someone who is competent, and whilst there is no restriction on the Landlord undertaking this themselves, as with many other aspects of their properties’ maintenance, they will often seek the services of a specialist to undertake the task on their behalf. Elmhurst has seen a significant increase in the number of Legionella risk assessments produced in Scotland in recent months, and this trend appears set to continue. The reasons behind this increase can be attributed to increased awareness by landlords often as the result of the
compulsory Landlord Registration Schemes that are now being put in place across the UK. In Scotland for example, where registration for most types of rented residential property is compulsory countrywide, the Government has provided advice to landlords via the mygov.scot website. This includes a section detailing landlords’ responsibilities, one of the requirements being to “make sure you've carried out a Legionella risk assessment”. Landlords in Wales and Northern Ireland are also subject to compulsory registration, although in England there is currently no national requirement. Some local authorities, however, have adopted their own schemes and it does seem likely that further schemes will be introduced across the country to provide consistency across the whole of the UK. As these registration schemes develop, it seems likely that landlords will be made even more aware of their responsibilities to their tenants and as such the demand for Legionella risk assessments will rise. This means there has never been a better time to consider becoming a Legionella Risk Assessor, which can be achieved by attending Elmhurst’s one-day training course.
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F E AT U R E www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk
In the past few months life as we know it has changed, and training is not exempt. We have seen the uncertainty of the coronavirus transform the country and our everyday lives, and, in some unfortunate cases, waistlines.
The changing face of training
Whilst things stay as they are now, we will continue with growing the number of online courses and webinars...
Mitesh Nathwani, Training Manager
I don’t think anyone had a contingency plan for a global pandemic and the best anyone could do was take the advice given by the government and make the necessary changes needed to carry on. With that in mind, on the 17th March we decided to stop all classroom based training, whether in Lutterworth or around the country. We decided from that point, with the uncertainty of everything, we needed to cancel classroom based courses on a rolling monthly basis.
Within the first week we had new short webinars available and we launched our online Retrofit Assessor course, which has proved very popular. I had decided that I wanted an online course that enabled the learner to do the course in their own time and at their own pace rather than be restricted to certain times and days. This method really worked for our members and we have received some fantastic feedback, as well as a spike in the number of assessors wanting to take up the retrofit courses.
Moving courses online
Since the success of the online Retrofit Assessor course we have also put a lot of time and effort into bringing some of our other qualification courses to the online platform. This has meant investing in new systems. We have made sure that our assessors are still able to top up their knowledge and skills as regularly as possible. We’ve introduced the following online courses: OCDEA APEL, Section 63, DEA (3 day), DEC APEL, OCDEA, NDEA APEL as well as many more.
Elmhurst was in a fortunate position whereby we were able to start producing new webinars as soon as the lockdown started and we already had a decent back catalogue, some of which we were able to offer our assessors for free. What you may not know is that although some of these webinars last approximately 30 minutes, they actually take 3 to 4 days to create.
t: 01455 883 250 • www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk
Looking to the future It’s really difficult to tell how the situation will unfold over the next few weeks and months. As you already know, we have established new online courses, adapted from what we have currently, along with fresh new content. We had not envisaged that we would be doing this so soon but sometimes being put in an unusual, unwanted position helps you grow and develop and we have definitely developed a new way of working, and a new way of training, which can only be a good thing. Above all of this, we have made sure that we are here for you, our members, and made sure that our delegates are getting free and discounted courses to help in these difficult times.
Hopefully we should soon start to see a return to some form of normality and be able to restart classroom based courses, both from Lutterworth and around the UK. Whilst things stay as they are now, we will continue with growing the number of online courses and webinars, and we will keep looking at new webinars and improving what we have. I am always happy to receive ideas of what you as the assessors out there would like to see us provide.
Finally, I suggest that the long term future of training will be a hybrid approach with courses that comprise online pre-learning and a shorter duration classroom experience for those that can travel, like to network or prefer to get away from the confines of work or home. We will also have our online presence and that will only grow. We hope that everyone has had the opportunity to view our dedicated online training platform (if not, take a look!) - as well as the free CPD we have provided. So, with that said, I thank you all for your continued support in these trying times and please stay safe, I look forward to seeing you soon.
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Measuring the Performance Gap Chris Ricketts, Consultancy Business Manager
TECHNICAL www.elmhurstenergyconsultancy.co.uk
The problem is that homes have been shown to routinely perform worse than expected, and often by a significant amount (an average of 60% underperformance in the largest study undertaken). We need measurement of thermal performance at a larger scale to validate these findings and to ultimately understand how to more efficiently insulate our homes, and to design methods and policies to improve their delivered in-use performance. You can’t manage what you don’t measure.
How Measured Energy Performance works
20% of all energy use in the UK is for heating homes, making it the single biggest user of energy. It’s a big cost to residents and a big contributor to the country’s carbon emissions. To meet targets set by the government, building regulations set out a series of minimum requirements for both new and existing buildings which aim to balance energy efficiency, carbon emission savings and running cost. RdSAP and SAP are useful methodologies when calculating a building’s relative energy efficiency and carbon emissions but are not without their limitations. Measured Energy Performance is a new service from Elmhurst Consultancy that can measure the actual energy performance of homes.
You can’t manage what you don’t measure Compliance modelling is useful to assess the energy efficiency of buildings under standardized conditions to determine if minimum performance requirements are met. However, a number of research projects over the years have highlighted a performance gap between their outputs, such as Energy Performance Certificate (EPCs), compared to the measured energy use during occupation. This poses the risk of misleading consumers, failing to account for the true occupancy behaviours of residents in how they use their homes, and, for society at large, the UK housing stock may not in fact be achieving the regulated targets that have been set out by Government.
Measured Energy Performance uses Smart HTC technology to measure the thermal performance of a house, defined by the ‘Heat Transfer Coefficient’ or HTC. The HTC encompasses all of the heat lost from a dwelling during the winter, through the walls, roof, floor and windows by conduction and radiation and by air movement and convection paths through gaps and cracks in the building fabric. That makes it the ultimate barometer of how well the overall fabric of the home keeps heat in and cold out. The same HTC value is calculated as part of all SAP, RdSAP and PHPP calculations, thus enabling direct comparison of predicted and measured performance, with variables such as occupancy energy use behaviours and weather all accounted for. Elmhurst has developed the concept of a measured energy performance report which will use the Smart HTC calculation at its core whilst presenting a very clear comparison of the SAP design intent against the performance of what has been delivered.
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Although not presently a regulatory requirement, such insight into the true measured performance of dwellings can serve housing developers in helping to ‘close the feedback loop’. It can also be used to promote good practice and is also perfect for those Design and Build contracts or instances where one might inherit properties as part of certain affordable housing planning policies. Up to now, the only tests to measure the thermal performance of dwellings have required the building to be vacated for at least a couple of days which is obviously impractical for the people who live there! Smart HTC uses smart meter data and measurements of internal temperature collected while the residents are in the house, and analyses this to measure the HTC. Our testing has shown that this is comparable with the industry-established tests, but much less invasive and, as a consequence, less expensive and highly scalable.
What could Smart Measured Energy Performance Reports be used for? Accurate knowledge of thermal performance enables a wide range of opportunities: n
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Better tailored advice on how a resident heats their home and the effect of energy improvement measures. Quality assurance on retrofit works and new build homes. Certification of offsite modular structures, showcasing that they are meeting design intent. Information to assist manufacturers in modelling of heating system components and products. Quantification of the effect of energy improvement or fuel poverty alleviating measures. As an advertisement to customers and residents that their new or retrofitted homes really do perform, helping
leading lights to promote their good practice. Measured Energy Performance should always serve as the starting point in order to provide that high level overview of intrinsic as built fabric performance. From there, we naturally advocate that if under performance is identified, further investigations are carried out in order to determine the root causes e.g. Pulse air leakage testing, U-Value measurements of certain elements and in some cases, thermography. Our partners, Build Test Solutions, are the building physics experts behind the Smart HTC method and their work has been in developing and validating the new technique over many years. Before Elmhurst makes it more widely available to its members, Elmhurst Consultancy are working to further develop and validate the proposition, working with the industry to offer the 'measurement as a service' - be that just Measured Energy Performance or a full toolkit of investigative works.
Contact Chris Ricketts at Elmhurst Energy Consultancy to find out more or to discuss your project. Consultancy@elmhurstenergy.co.uk | 01455 883259
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Elmhurst Promoting Members (since 1995) Stuart Fairlie, Technical and Operations Director
Our members are important to us some of whom have been with us since day one and it’s our commitment to them which is why we continue to grow as a scheme.
Our members are important to us, some of whom have been with us since day one, and it’s our commitment to them which is why we continue to grow as a scheme. Whether originally with Elmhurst, BRE, Northgate or NHER they are all equally as important.
variety of stakeholders about the fantastic work that Elmhurst members perform. In the last 12 months alone, Elmhurst has presented or exhibited at: n n
Fantastic Technical Support Elmhurst is known for its fantastic technical support, available 9am5pm Monday to Friday. Our technical advisors are all knowledgeable and experienced energy assessors themselves, and we continually invest in staff training to ensure their knowledge remains up to date and in line with industry best practices.
Promoting Members at Events It doesn’t just stop there; we get ‘out and about’ and tell a wide
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SHEEN (Glasgow), SEEEG (Ipswich).
Midland Energy Professionals (MEP) annual conference.
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Devon & Cornwall Home Inspectors (DCHI) events. Future Build (London Excel). 10 Chartered Association of Building Engineers (CABE) regional conferences - CABE national conference in Manchester.
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CABE webinar on Future Homes Standard and Part L. Property Energy Professionals Association (PEPA) conference (Derby). Energy Action Scotland - PRS event for Landlords Elmhurst Conferences in E&W (Leicester) and Scotland (Glasgow) Regional Forum events in over 6 locations
Roadshows in Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and the north of England.
We continually attended dozens of groups and meeting pushing for a better future including:
Many Regional Events up and down the country including; n
Market-Leading Materials We ensure that all the work undertaken by our members is quality assured, which we champion and promote through our market-leading materials available free of charge to members.
Construction Week (at the NEC).
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SAP Industry Forum (SAPIF), SAP Scientific Integrity Group (SAPSIG), Building Regulations Advisory Committee Working Groups (WGs) in (E&W and NI), various Scottish Government events and short life working groups. Many different working groups across all the regions e.g. Section 63 WG, Energy Savings Opportunities Scheme (ESOS) Environment Agency WG, Retrofit Assessor and Retrofit Coordinator WGs. PAS2035 Steering Group, initial scoping event for PAS2038. Technical Steering Groups across the various strands (domestic and non-domestic). Industry Meetings including PEPA, Energy Assessor Scheme Operating Board (EASOB) and Conventions etc.
Lending our voice to consultations We have and will continue to reply to Government’s Call for Evidences and Consultations. Indeed we try to reply to all that
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apply to energy in the built environment, which has included over 30 since the Clean Growth Strategy (Oct 2017), and the list keeps growing. The heart of our message is to build upon the work that our members undertake, who we rightly portray as the experts in the field.
Doing more and saying more We ‘do more’, we ‘say more’, and we ‘influence more’. We regularly write news articles which we promote via press articles; these are all issued on our own website news, as well as social media included Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. And we don’t stop there - we push our own unique manifesto each year to focus what needs doing, to champion energy assessments and Elmhurst members.
Winner of multiple industry awards At the end of last year we won the National Energy Efficiency Award for ‘National Quality Management, Compliance & Training Company of the Year’; public recognition for the excellent work that is being done to improve the energy efficiency of our homes and offices, and to encourage best practice within the industry. Only recently we wrote in support of Lord Foster of Bath private members bill which was debated in the House of Lords, and Elmhurst were mentioned first in his opening speech in the lively debate.
“In the last year it has been a pleasure to get out and speak at a wide variety of events within the built environment and certainly at all the events I have presented, the wider stakeholders really value the work that Elmhurst members undertake. “We have always believed in our members to drive forward energy efficiency in the UK. The long term targets are all set by Government, and we all need to get out delivering the work that needs to be undertaken in our homes and buildings, we will always advocate that Elmhurst members continue to be the best in our industry.“ Stuart Fairlie, Technical & Operations Director at Elmhurst
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Market data
Existing Dwellings Volume of EPC lodgements and residential house sales on a rolling 12 month basis (by quarter).
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Volume of EPC lodgements on a 12 month rolling basis
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Volume of Residential housesales on a 12 month rolling basis
Commentary House sales spiked in March 2016 on the back of changes to stamp duty and then quickly fell back to a run rate of under 1.16 million. Since January 2018 the volume has been relatively constant.
Here at Elmhurst we collect and analyse data from many sources in the belief that it helps us make better business decisions. Turning this data into a digestible form takes time and requires a detailed understanding of context.
The volume of EPCs peaked in the 12 months to May 2014, driven in a large part by ECO. This fell back sharply to a low of 1.2 Million in March 2018. Two years of recovery peaked again in February 2020 with year on year growth of 11% largely due to Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards in the private rental sector. Since March 2020 the volume has dropped by 85% as Government policy dictated that where possible house sales should be paused and assessments undertaken only on empty properties.
In each edition of Energy Matters we will provide you with a snapshot of this data, with a brief commentary, which we hope you find of interest, and maybe help you prepare for the future.
Outlook
Covid-19 has obviously had a major impact on the construction, housing and energy assessment markets since March 2020. Due to the lag in published statistics these graphs are notor are only slightly, impacted by this current crisis.
Covid-19 has impacted everybody and made long term planning very difficult, however: n
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Construction and housing were the last to be “locked down” and this may be because Government perceive them as relatively low risk and their financial importance to the country. Hopefully that means they will be amongst the first to recover. There is a pent-up demand for EPCs and house sales that were paused.
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New Build / On Construction Volume of residential house starts and completions on a rolling 12 month basis (by quarter)
Outlook It is worrying that house starts have fallen so rapidly especially with a government indicating that house building needs to increase to 300,000 per annum. The impact of Covid will undoubtedly push that figure lower still. With completions now significantly ahead of starts “work in progress” is falling and this is bound to impact completions. The volume of On Construction EPCs is at an all-time high but with new starts slowing this is likely to fall.
Non-Domestic / Commercial buildings n
Volume of residential house starts on a rolling 12 month basis
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Volume of residential house completion on a rolling 12 month basis
Non residential (commercial) property sales in the UK on a 12 month rolling basis. Volume of Commercial property EPCs in the UK on a rolling 12 month basis.
Volume of residential house starts and completions on a rolling 12 month basis (by quarter)
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Volume of on-construction (new build residential) EPCs in the UK issued on a rolling 12 month basis
Commentary Using data up to December 2019 completions are now at recent record of 213,000. Unfortunately, and nothing to do with Covid-19, home starts have fallen back dramatically from their 204,000 peak in December 2018 to a three year low of 188,000. The most significant fall off relates to private housing in England. Volume of EPCs has now plateaued at just over 300,000.
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Volume of Commercial property EPCs in the UK on a rolling 12 month basis Non residential (commercial) property sales in the UK on a 12 month rolling basis
Commentary Commercial property transactions haven continued to fall since October 2017 and are now at 120,070, 7% down from the peak and 4.3% down year on year, The surge in EPCs that started in November 2017 has held up well at around 102,000. Unfortunately Covid19 impacted lodgements in the last weeks of March and throughout April 2020.
Outlook With massive uncertainty in the business community, it is difficult to imagine that there will be any major improvements in the commercial property sector. The impact of minimum energy efficiency standards and the ten year anniversary are both well established and should maintain current volumes.
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