Delivering Sustainable Buildings
An Industry Insider's View

The UK government has committed to reducing the nation?s carbon emissions by 80% by 2050. Buildings currently use almost half of the UK?s generated energy and they are now the focus of an unprecedented drive to cut energy use in our homes, offices, schools, libraries ? in fact in almost every building, public or private.

Delivering Sustainable Buildings: an industry insider?s view offers peer-to-peer insights and advice from a leading practitioner in this field and brings together in one book an overview of the main issues to consider when creating energy-efficient and sustainable buildings. A resource to dip into for practical advice, which is both highly readable and also backed up by in-depth technical knowledge, giving the important points to note and common pitfalls to avoid.  Based on observations of an author with hands-on experience of dealing with the various elements of the building services engineering industry, the book gives a unique insight into the particular challenges faced by designers, project managers, contractors and installers working to deliver lower carbon and sustainable building projects and operation.

There is a lot of guidance on sustainable buildings available from reputable sources including BRE, CIBSE, B&ES, ECA and BSRIA. This book is different in that it speaks directly to contractors and practitioners, with practical messages dealing with real on-site challenges, offering practical advice based on experience. Many contractors are now faced with a business choice of offering services related to issues of the energy hierarchy, minimising energy use, providing good building automation and controls and then looking further at microgeneration/renewables.  Here they must decide what technologies might be suitable for their businesses, as well as considering what level of training is required before they or their employees can start to work with these technologies. 

Delivering Sustainable Buildings: an industry insider?s view will help specialist contractors and facilities managers understand sustainable buildings at the strategic level (legislation, finance, training) and then to offer practical advice on various aspects of sustainable buildings (water use, energy-efficient building services, commissioning and keeping the building maintained to optimum performance) to their clients.

Preface xi

About the book xxiii

About the author xxv

Dedication and Acknowledgements xxvii

Glossary of abbreviations xxix

Introduction 1

Early modelling and design (BIM) 1

Technologies and applications 7

References 11

Section 1 Sustainability in the wider context 13

1 Making the right choices – the sustainability dilemma 15

Objectivity is the key 15

Rigorous standards and enforcement 17

Where will our energy come from in the future? 20

The leaky bucket! 23

References 24

2 Planning ahead – the role of planning authorities 25

A major influence? 25

Planning gain 27

The disconnect between building control and planning 29

The Merton rule 30

Training for planners and building control officers 32

Planning for the future 34

References 36

3 Legislative overview and meeting your legal obligations 37

Global targets and local actions 37

The European influence 38

Applying the EPBD in the UK 41

Continuous change – Part L 2010–2013–2016 and a new EPBD 43

Taking the energy performance of buildings to the next level 44

Legislation levels, change and enforcement – opinion 45

Joined-up government? 46

Looking forward 47

Enforcement 48

Some final thoughts 50

References 51

4 Paying for it – the finance question 53

Short-termism – damages sustainability 53

Funding for sustainable building projects 56

The cheapest kilowatt-hour is the one you never use! 59

What is the Green Deal? 61

References 65

Section 2 Delivering sustainable buildings 67

5 Delivering an energy-efficient and sustainable building 69

The wider design process – BREEAM 70

Learning from the manufacturing and car industry 72

Designing for sustainable communities 73

Where is the electricity coming from? 75

Dynamic demand control 76

Looking ahead 78

References 79

6 Managing energy and reducing its use 81

Energy is too cheap 81

Energy use and carbon taxes 82

Energy management must be integrated 83

The energy management process 85

Data is everything 85

Training, communication and education 89

The development of energy ratings 90

References 98

7 Water – a forgotten issue 99

Water and energy inexorably linked 99

Management of water in building services 106

Grey water and rainwater harvesting 109

Water and pipework infrastructure 111

References 113

8 Putting it together – the contractor’s role 115

Giving contractors room to work 115

The soft landings process 118

Towards proactive contracting 120

A sustainable future for contractors 121

Waste 125

Water 126

Adding value and opportunity 126

References 127

9 Main plant and building services – HVAC systems 129

Fixed thinking – assigned to the past 129

System design and application 131

Choice of heating systems 133

Ventilation 135

Air conditioning and comfort cooling 142

Bringing it all together 143

Further reading 144

10 Getting and keeping control – building energy management systems 145

BMS becomes BEMS and can save a lot more energy 146

Evaluating an existing BEMS 148

Degree day analysis 149

Defining good control strategies 152

Example control strategies 153

Upgrading the BEMS – the business case 155

Specifying a new BEMS 156

Continuous optimisation 158

The BEMS needs user involvement 159

References 159

11 Commissioning and handover for energy efficiency 161

What is commissioning? 164

The commissioning process 165

Regulations and standards for commissioning 174

References 174

12 Keeping it all going – the importance of maintenance to sustainability 175

Maintenance is fundamental 175

Is it worth the risk? 179

Thermal imaging – seeing in a different light 182

Application of thermal imaging to sustainable buildings 185

Linking sustainability and maintenance 195

References 199

Section 3 The human element 201

13 The skills challenge 203

Resurgence of skills 203

Case study – East of England skills challenge 204

Manufacturers and trade associations – role in training and skills 207

The green deal – implication on skills 209

References 212

14 Changing behaviours 213

Behaviour, attitudes and perceptions 213

Convenience and resistance to change 215

Getting it right from the start 216

Getting the workforce on board 218

References 219

15 Putting my own house in order 221

I had a dream 221

Jack of all trades 222

Greenfield or brownfield 222

Architect and planner-talk to the planners 224

Specification, materials and construction 225

Skills and knowing your limitations 227

Mechanical and electrical 228

Sustainability dilemma 229

The future: improvement and continuous commissioning 230

References 231

Further information 232

16 Sharing our technology and expertise with the developed and developing world 233

The big picture 233

Sharing our expertise 235

What did the Romans do for us? 238

Business and exports 239

References 242

Further information 242

Conclusion – some big challenges ahead 243

Index 247

Mike Malina is founder and Director of Energy Solutions Associates -a Building Services Engineering Practice in the field of Sustainable Engineering, Energy Management and Training. He has 30 years' related experience working at the start of his career in the offshore oil industry, then working in both the public and private sectors in related buildings and building engineering services sector.   He is the principal trainer for the Building & Engineering Services Association (formally HVCA), Building Regulations Competent Persons Certification scheme for commercial and domestic HVACR work.  Over many years Mike has conducted hundreds of building energy audits and has never been defeated in finding ways to save energy.  In 2010 he won the HVR Consultant of the year award and in 2011 the Innovation and Sustainability outstanding contribution to the Industry award.  Mike has spoken at many industry conferences and seminars, building a reputation for saying it as it is and cutting through all the ‘greenwash’.