Why do we audit?

16 FEATURE

www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk

Stuart Fairlie, Managing Director

I think that most of us feel that we do a good job and no one (especially auditors!) like to be questioned. But at the same time we have all come across energy assessors who make mistakes, cut corners or even manipulate inputs to get the ‘right’ answer. We at Elmhurst believe that quality assurance is essential to deliver good quality energy certificates and that good auditing is an essential part of that process and, when done at its best, is a learning experience for us all.

Audits are a requirement for all energy schemes and it comes at a significant cost, but at a cost which we think is worth paying because it secures the reputation of energy certificates. This means that consumers can have confidence in them and policy makers continue to demand energy certificates.

One definition of quality is when the product meets customers’ requirements. When it comes to energy assessments we believe that means an EPC that is accurate, consistent, informative and forms a good basis on which to make decisions. Elmhurst can influence all of these aspects, but for accuracy and consistency we rely on our accredited energy assessor members. Quality Assurance

Auditing, even if applied at 100% sampling, will never assure quality. The quality assurance that Elmhurst provides is based upon putting the effort in before the assessment through:

n Excellent training delivered by experts n Intuitive software n Great technical support n Helpful manuals and Technical

Bulletins

This is done on the basis that auditing, which is inevitably done after the event, will identify fewer problems that are often difficult, expensive and inconvenient to resolve.

At Elmhurst we also support quality assurance through a closed loop process.

Since the 1970s the aviation industry openly report and investigate any air traffic incidents. The idea was to find out what went wrong, how everyone can learn, and what everyone can do to improve. It was not a finger pointing exercise, but what is called a ‘closed loop process’ with an aim to improve quality for all. The quality assurance process that we adopt at Elmhurst is based upon these same principles.

Auditing

Auditing is now based around two principles of “random” and “smart “audits.

n Random audits are selected blind and are an effective way of gauging the overall quality of

EPCs produced where as

n Smart audits are initially focusing on high risk areas that aren’t necessarily wrong but worthy of further investigation because they include a feature which can have a significant impact on the EPC rating and are either unusual, or have been used by others to improperly affect the rating.

As a scheme were are required to audit 2% of all lodgments and, for each of our members, a minimum of 1% or one per annum, whichever is greater. As smart audits are random (and therefore not equally spread) and with rounding, it is very possible that individual assessors will receive more than the 2%. The sample rules are different in different regions (e.g. Scotland) but in essence the same type of approach is where we are or where we are heading. and say what we can do to help every one of our members and therefore wider industry.

So when that individual audit is called on a member, not only is this not a finger pointing exercise, it is ensuring that all members are treated exactly the same, providing a level playing field, whilst also making Elmhurst members the best in the business.

Creating a feedback loop

Here at Elmhurst we follow the rules set by the Governments in terms of audits of Energy Certificates, but we don’t stop at just the individual audit level. We analyse the results every month across all strands, we look at trends and drill into the details. We then use this information to go back through the entire process

Summary

If we don’t audit independently, then what would occur? We do this as it is the right thing to do, and moves us all on as an industry towards better quality. This is what we all strive for, it will bring better outcomes for everyone, more energy assessments on buildings for owners and occupiers. The clear message is that yes we recognise the pain of an audit at the time of it being requested, but we have to all believe that it is very worthwhile for individuals and for us all as a collective. Without this assurance we would not be where we are today, but it is continually evolving and we continue to improve all aspects of what we do to make our members the best in the industry.