Conservation of Fuel and Energy
The Building Regulations require that buildings must be designed and constructed so that the amount of energy required for the operation of the building and the amount of associated CO2 emissions are minimised. Some completed buildings have been found to be non-compliant with Part L of the Building Regulations. This not only leaves the owner liable to prosecution by the Building Control Authority but also leads to practical difficulties in that remedial action may be difficult and expensive, to remedy this non-compliance.
In order to avoid such a situation you should immediately engage a Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) registered BER assessor to carry out an assessment of your building. A list of registered assessors is available online at www.sei.ie/ber. Your assessor will be able to carry out calculations based on your building drawings and as part of the BER process and should be able to supply you with:
(a) the pages showing conformance with Building Regulations Part L, and,
(b) a Microsoft Word version of the Details Report.
It will be readily apparent what rating the proposed building will achieve and if the design of the proposed building is fully compliant with Part L. At this point, if the building is non-compliant in any way, appropriate changes can be made to ensure the building being constructed is compliant.
Compliance with Part L of the Building Regulations
Compliance with Part L of the Regulations must be demonstrated using the Dwelling Energy Assessment Procedure (DEAP) methodology for dwellings and the Non domestic Energy Assessment Procedure (NEAP) methodology for buildings other than dwellings. Your registered BER assessor will use this process when carrying out an assessment of your building. It will take account of construction type, levels of insulation, ventilation, air tightness, fuel types, heating systems and controls, distribution losses, etc.
Building Energy Rating (BER)
A Building Energy Rating (BER) is an indication of the energy performance of a building it is similar to the energy label on a fridge with a scale of A to G. “A” rated buildings are the most energy efficient. Before a building is occupied for the first time, or advertised for sale/let, the owner (or Agent) of a building must obtain a BER certificate and advisory report in relation to the building.
