Energy Matters: Issue 7

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ISSUE 7 | 2021 www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk

ENERGY MATTERS Championing Women in Energy Efficiency All about PAS 2035 now that ECO3 is here

What do U-Value?

Elmhurst responds to Scottish Government's consultation

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Foreword Each month we survey 100 members and analyse each and every response. I am delighted to report that throughout the pandemic we have achieved a score that is best in class. Pats on the back are nice but we really learn from where we have not met your expectations so please do feedback how you feel.

On the political front there has been a mix of encouraging and disappointing news.

Martyn Reed Managing Director Elmhurst Energy

Welcome to the latest edition of Energy Matters. As we gradually return to the office after almost 14 months working from home I hope that you felt supported throughout this period with our detailed safety guidance, our supportive wellbeing webinars and, of course, the ability to speak with a member of the Elmhurst support team when needed.

It is encouraging that... ...Government are planning to enforce MEES requirements In 2019, BEIS launched the Enforcement Pilot study to research the current success in enforcing Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) across the domestic and nondomestic sector. The project was in two phases.

Phase 1 focused on the developing process to identify non-compliant properties and their landlords. The answer to the question “Why isn’t MEES being enforced?” appears to be answerable in two words: “it’s difficult”, but the report did flesh out some of the major areas of concern, and propose solutions.

Phase 2, the Enforcement Pilot, was launched by BEIS in July 2020 and will work with twelve local authorities to test, develop and refine the findings from the first year of the study, with a focus on the domestic sector.

It is great to see government taking enforcement seriously; it is a very important part of the process to ensure people who attempt to not play by the rules are caught. Elmhurst continues to push for excellence in standards to improve all homes and businesses and our new Energy Performance of Buildings Register should prove to be a valuable tool to identify and investigate offenders.

...ECO 3 adopts PAS 2035 From 1st July, all retrofit projects delivered through the Energy Company Obligation (ECO3), have been overseen by a TrustMark Approved Retrofit Coordinator, such as those accredited by Elmhurst.

For those who are already involved in the sector this is not news but there is always a feeling (and perhaps an element of hope from some) that change will never actually happen. What is clear is that change has now happened and it is encouraging that this is the first of many future government initiatives that will use PAS 2035 as a core requirement.

Elmhurst continues to push for excellence in standards to improve all homes and businesses...

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...ECO 4 consultation has been issued The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has released its proposal for ECO4 which will replace ECO3 and will run from April 2022 until March 2026 at an average value of £1 billion per year.

The main objective of the scheme is to improve as many fuel poor homes as reasonably practicable to EPC band C by 2030, with an interim milestone of band D by 2025. This will help to reduce emissions and will contribute towards the country's net zero agenda.

Elmhurst welcomes the release of the consultation and, despite the tight timescales, will seek the input from Elmhurst members before submitting a full and considered response.

But it is disappointing that... ...the Heat and Building Strategy is delayed The media reports that it was disagreements inside government which delayed plans for a summer release of the low carbon heat and buildings strategy.

It was anticipated that the strategy would be released before parliament's summer break, however, there has reportedly been a standoff over the cost of the plans with Whitehall. This has resulted in a delay to the strategy until potentially September.

...a proposal for Performance based standards ignored DEC assessors In October 2019, the government

told the Climate Change Committee that it would consult on introducing a new scheme that would rate commercial and industrial buildings based on their actual energy consumption and carbon emissions. On 17th March 2021 the Performance-Based Policy Framework in large Commercial & Industrial Buildings in England and Wales consultation was published with proposals to deliver on that commitment. It sought views on the government's proposal to introduce a national performance-based framework for assessing energy use and carbon emissions in commercial and industrial buildings above 1,000m² in England and Wales.

Elmhurst is disappointed to see that an Australian solution appears to be the preferred methodology, in preference to an enhanced DEC process.

Whilst alternative and recently developed methodologies may appear shiny and new, they all represent the same thing: an in-use energy assessment. So we have asked government why the DEC has not been used to help develop the new framework.

In our response, and in meetings that followed, we are urging the government to invest in the home grown methodology that is regulated, quality assured and supported via established schemes, who compete on both quality of service and price, and delivered through the use of a skilled work force - DEC Assessors.

That’s probably enough to be going on with so I will sign out by wishing you the best of luck, both personally and professionally, over the coming months and to remind you that the Health and Wellbeing webinars that we

recorded for you are still available to view at www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk/ health-and-wellbeing-webinars

Martyn Reed Managing Director Elmhurst Energy

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Contents F E AT U R E

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05 How Elmhurst is trying to improve the Air Conditioning industry 06 Championing women in energy efficiency 08 Elmhurst responds to one of Scottish Government's most important consultations to date 10 All about PAS 2035 now that ECO3 is here

14 Technical Corner: What do U-Value?

16 An introduction to Elmhurst's U-Value Competency scheme 18 A spotlight on Technical Support

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19 Elmhurst responds to Northern Ireland Energy Strategy 20 Back to the classroom

12 Elmhurst takes up the fight on behalf of DEC Assessors

22 Market data

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Championing Women in Energy Efficiency

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How Elmhurst is trying to improve the Air Conditioning industry Danny Pearson, Non-Domestic Technical Consultant

In May 2020 government released a consultation to increase the threshold for inspections of air conditioning systems from systems with an effective rated output of over 12kW to those with an effective rated output of over 70kW. In our response we argued that by raising the threshold, a large number of businesses would miss out on the possibility of reducing both their costs and energy consumption. On top of this, following an investigation, we estimated that there are around 520,000 air conditioning systems, of which 62% of those systems have an effective rated output of between 12kW and 70kW. Government took our response on board, and it played a major factor in their decision to not alter the threshold.

We are in the process of lobbying for methods to improve compliance within industry.

These are methods such as: n

n

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Ensuring that all our DEC and EPC Energy Assessors record the existence or need for an air conditioning Inspection certificate on appropriate buildings Looking at further trigger points for an assessment such as the sale and rental of a building Lobbying for an air conditioning compliance check as part of insurance renewals for a building

We have begun accepting lodgements from Ace Wizard from 21st April 2021. This means that our accredited air conditioning assessors now have more choice when selecting software to use. We are also the only scheme that has inherited

the DCLG software, which we are currently in the process of updating and improving to be released in an online format later in the year.

We are currently in the process of further developing our air conditioning scheme. We will be looking to increase our CPD offering and training courses for our members and those interested in becoming air conditioning assessors. Alongside this, we will be upskilling members of our Non-Domestic support team, thus improving their ability to provide technical support for practicing air conditioning assessors, as well as those undertaking training who wish to join the scheme.

With all this in mind, it is a time of great transition at Elmhurst in the air conditioning assessment sector, so keep an eye out for further updates and news.

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Championing Women in Energy Efficiency I regularly attend industry events and training courses and know from my own experience there are often very few other women in attendance and we all seem to gravitate towards each other.

Elmhurst Energy has always prided itself on being industry leaders in all areas and being the best scheme to support our members. With this in mind, we have been looking into: n Fiona Wilson, Business Development Manager

It will come as no surprise to learn that women are underrepresented in the energy efficiency industry. Only 13% of Elmhurst members in England and Wales are women, with the percentage falling to 11.5% for Scotland and Northern Ireland.

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Why there are so few women How we can support our female members How we can encourage new female entrants into the industry.

To better understand the experiences of our female members we sent out a questionnaire to get their take on the industry, what brought them into it, and the hurdles they've faced. We received an overwhelming number of responses to the questionnaire, and this has helped us shape our next steps.

Our respondents highlighted that the flexible nature of the job suited them and it was a good role to move into when changing careers. They also highlighted a desire for networking and social media forums for women to discuss any concerns or suggestions to make the job easier, in particular around the safety aspect of lone working or

entering homes/businesses by themselves.

The final point raised was around advertising and imagery, how we present to members, and how we advertise as an industry. We will be looking at this going forward and promoting more inclusive language and images.

We have now held our first Forum event for women, giving us a chance to talk through some of these ideas with our members and we will be looking to hold more of these going forward, as well as looking at social media forums for assessors.

Having a more balanced industry, whether it be around gender, race, religion or age (the latter of which is another factor we need to consider as an industry), will help us all develop and grow to provide a more varied outlook, and will of course benefit customers. We look forward to continuing our work with all of our existing members, and we greatly appreciate the feedback we have had, and the feedback that we will get in the future. This all helps shape the scheme for our members, to provide the best support and a more equal working environment.

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majority of people are very kind.

Member profile Daisy Drake 15 years ago Daisy Drake left her job in London to try something new. She’s now a qualified NDEA, DEA and OCDEA and received the Energy Advisor/Assessor award for the South East in 2016. Here’s how she got involved in the industry and founded her own business DaisEPC Ltd.

Why did you join the industry?

I joined by chance really. I used to live in London where I worked as a print designer but my husband and I moved to Worthing and there wasn’t really the same market there. It was at a time when printers were closing at a rapid number each week and I thought that after 13 years, it was time for a change.

Although at first it was just a job, over the years my attitude has changed, I find the more I learn, the more interesting the job has become and consequently the more passionate I feel about doing it.

What’s your favourite part of the job?

I really like the variety of people I get to meet. I have found it has restored my faith in human nature as the vast

I’ve learnt a lot, both about my own job from people who have extensively researched new technologies for their homes, or work in the industry and about life in general from just taking time to sit and chat to someone.

In the early days I would have plenty of time, so would take a cup of tea if offered and quite happily listen to someone’s stories, especially if it meant I could play with their dog. When I can, I still find time to listen.

I also like the fact that I can sometimes help people, by explaining the report, informing them about new schemes to improve their homes - even small things like changing bulbs or

electric meters, or just their electric tariff.

Do you think being a woman is an advantage?

Yes I do; the area where I live has a high elderly population and I feel that the majority of older people are more comfortable with a lady they don’t know, rather than a man, especially as it is generally older ladies.

You can read the full interview with Daisy online.

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F E AT U R E

Retrofit and PAS 2035

www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk

Elmhurst responds to one of Scottish Government's most important consultations to date Jonathan Bourke, Scotland Business Development Manager

In the year that Glasgow prepares to welcome delegates from around the world to the COP26 UN Summit on Climate Change, February saw the publication of The Scottish Government’s Draft Heat in Buildings Strategy (Consultation). This set out the ambition to achieve Net Zero emissions from our buildings by 2045, take steps to eradicate the scourge of fuel poverty from our society, and the discuss the mechanism for delivering on these goals as part of the Country’s post-COVID recovery...

Critically, as most carbon reduction will come from retrofitted improvements of existing buildings, great consideration needs to be made to the retrofit process as a whole and ensure what’s done is right for both the property and the occupant.

A systematic approach (as found, for example, by ascertaining client ‘Intended Outcomes’ within the PAS 2035 process) must be undertaken and measures should be installed at a time and in a sequence which maximises appropriate recommendations.

A fundamental aspect to this involves reducing the risk of unintended consequences, such as poor air quality or those which perpetuate the performance gap between what was planned and what was installed.

EPC trigger points

At 185 pages there’s a lot of reading! Elmhurst supports the pathway detailed and its overall intentions to reduce carbon emissions, and published our formal response here: https://www.elmhurstenergy.co. uk/uploads/Heat_in_Buildings_ Strategy_Scotland.pdf Part of moving forward to a greener future must involve actively improving occupiers’ knowledge. Usage of a building creates a massive variable in its true efficiency, therefore, the greater the occupiers’ understanding of how to use energy in their homes and businesses in the most efficient way, the greater the chance of overall emissions savings.

Funding models must be consistent with the principles of PAS 2035 which means a breakaway from the traditional measure-led approach and taking a step further - Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) trigger points should also be revised. For example, when a material change has occurred in the building which will impact its energy efficiency, property owners and dutyholders should be obliged to commission accurate and measured records which will not only be specific to their own property but allow metadata to be extracted for ongoing analysis.

As well as this, reducing the EPC’s validity period from 10 years to 3 years will promote proactive actions from homeowners and landlords to improve their

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buildings and overcome some of the complacency observed.

Reforms to the EPC metric Amending the metric for EPCs will be required (as noted in the Consultation), with the Scottish Government echoing our view that they “want these reforms to remove anomalie... which at present in some circumstances can disincentivise installation of zero emissions heating systems.”

Currently, due to the use of electricity and its associated higher unit price (in cost

calculations), EPCs may not actually demonstrate an improvement in SAP score (or EPC Band rating) and this may result in a less favourable rating overall - particularly where insulating the building envelope either can’t or won’t be done fully.

What’s worse, the EPC may not recommend a move away from fossil fuels as a heating source at all and this would inevitably lead to a detrimental impact on rolling out strategies to promote a shift away from fossil fuel heating systems.

With the right metrics, a considered assessment can be

completed for a homeowner or landlord which provides recommendations to make savings not only on bills but also reductions in carbon emissions.

It is imperative that funding for recommended improvements is given careful consideration as often they can be unaffordable to many - especially those most in need.

This must work in tandem with investment in training and development to gain the full benefits to the economy particularly in upskilling Retrofit Installers, Assessors, and Coordinators.

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All about PAS 2035 now that ECO3 is here Simon Flint, Existing Dwellings Technical Consultant

We have now passed the all-important July 1st 2021 deadline and for those who work within ECO 3, this now means that all projects have to follow the PAS 2035 process.

In practice, this means that ECO installers now have a new process they need to follow and whilst many have already adopted these new requirements, a significant number have waited until the deadline before reacting.

For our members this means a range of new opportunities to build on the existing skills and experience they have as Domestic Energy Assessors (DEAs) and train as Retrofit Assessors.

We have created a training course that covers the background to PAS 2035, all the relevant building physics knowledge you need, and also introduces you to the new software we have developed that will enable you to complete the three reports required for a Retrofit Assessment.

This software now includes our newly released Condition Report Go app for iOS devices. This will

have massive timesaving benefits, allowing an assessor to compile and submit a Condition Report whilst on site.

The training is available either online or in the classroom and, once completed, you will be able add Retrofit Assessment to your accreditation strand.

You can add your details to the free ‘Search for Assessor’ facility on our website that will allow homeowners, Retrofit Coordinators or any other interested parties to find your details.

We currently still have government funded training places available that means you could complete this training at a

vastly subsidised cost.

As other funding streams are introduced by government, the demand for Retrofit Assessors will grow as we work towards our aim of achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Already LAD (Phase 2) has been released with £300 million of funding to be allocated in the coming months and this can only be accessed using PAS 2035 approved processes. Other schemes are sure to follow, including ECO 4.

With all this in mind, if you have not already investigated the additional opportunities that Retrofit may offer you, now is definitely the time to do so.

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Why did you choose to become a Retrofit Coordinator?

I did the course because I’m a building surveyor so it fits in with my background. I’ve been a building surveyor since 2010, and I’ve always been involved in different industry initiatives.

Ashley Crawford

How RdSAP to SAP Converter is helping Retrofit Coordinators Ashley Crawford is the owner of CC Ltd which he established in 2007.

He was one of the first Elmhurst members to lodge an Energy Performance Certificate with the company and has since branched out into commercial EPCs, Display Energy Certificates and ESOS assessments to name a few! He’s recently added Retrofit Assessor and Retrofit Coordinator to that list so we got in touch to find out what he thought of our RdSAP to SAP Converter software.

I was a bit reluctant at first, due to the coming and goings of industry initiatives, and of course I questioned whether I should be spending money during a time of uncertainty, but I have a lot of faith in Retrofit and the future of PAS 2035. CC Ltd now has 4 Retrofit Coordinators and the investment is already worthwhile.

What kind of projects have you been involved in?

I’ve been involved in loads everything from one man band ECO installers to larger boiler and insulation companies and several housing associations that are doing whole house retrofits.

I’ve had a lot of Path Cs (high risk projects) with eight or nine measures and battery storage.

How has RdSAP to SAP Converter helped you?

Being able to convert an RdSAP XML file to a full SAP file gives me much more flexibility when it comes to modelling. In Design SAP I change different inputs such as wall insulation and so on, which helps me create an accurate Improvement Plan.

You could do the bare minimum and do your modelling in an Energy Report but I don’t want to

be like that. Clients come to me because they know the quality of my work and you’ll find that most people who’ve done a Level 5 course are interested in the job and enjoy problem solving.

Why did you choose to accredit with Elmhurst?

Things just seem to flow better with Elmhurst and I’ve always had a good relationship with the team. They also seem to care more about the industry, and there’s auditing in place to make sure work meets a particular standard.

From a practical view point I’ve got 18 surveyors who work for me and they all say they’d rather use RdSAP Go when completing assessments. It just flows nicely and all the inputs are laid out in a logical way so you’re not running up and stairs to tick things off.

And finally, is there any advice you'd give to those just starting out as Retrofit Coordinators?

All singing and dancing software is not always the answer, take your time to read and understand PAS 2030 and PAS 2035, and use software that has a logical and honest approach to create a better industry.

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Elmhurst takes up the fight on behalf of DEC Assessors

The existing DEC methodology should be modernised and suitably improved to incorporate the needs mentioned throughout the consultation...

Josh Wakeling, Non-Domestic Support Team Leader

Only 7% of nondomestic buildings are over 1,000m² in England and Wales.

However, these buildings account for approximately 50% of the total floor area, and it can be estimated that these buildings use over 53% of the total energy used in nondomestic buildings.

Does this mean we should change our approach towards assessing the energy efficiency of larger buildings when trying to reduce the UK’s carbon emissions?

To fully understand the energy performance of any building, we at Elmhurst believe in the “Golden Triangle” of assessment; three key measurement techniques to allow for the best possible understanding of a buildings energy use. By having each of these three measurement tools, you can make the best possible choices when it comes to improving and retrofitting buildings with energy saving and low carbon improvement measures. These have been detailed further in our Manifesto for Growth.

Here is a summary: 1. Asset Assessment (SBEM & DSM EPC) - This is a prediction based on standard assumptions and standardised running times to ensure consistency, comparison and benchmarking against other buildings. It is key for simplified building regulations assessments and allows for an assessment based on the activity and building type of the building to compare to similar buildings within the building type and activity.

2. Occupancy Assessment (TBC) - This is the prediction based on the assessed occupancy use of the building.

Basically, what is the building expected to use in terms of energy?

3. Metered Assessment (DEC) This is the actual metered energy use and carbon emissions for the building.

It allows comparison against other buildings and can change over time showing the impact of some improvements and changes in energy management. Its calculation is impacted by adverse weather and unprecedented changes in occupancy such as Covid 19.

Each of the above allow for an overall assessment or measurement of a building to ensure the best possible decisions are made. Only using one of the three can cause unintended consequences.

In October 2019, the government told the Climate Change Committee that it would consult on introducing a new scheme that would rate commercial and industrial buildings based on their actual metered energy consumption and carbon emissions.

On 17th March 2021 the Performance-Based Policy Framework in large Commercial &

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Industrial Buildings in England and Wales consultation was published, with proposals to deliver on that commitment. It sought views on the Government’s proposal to introduce a national performance-based framework for assessing energy use and carbon emissions in commercial and industrial buildings above 1,000m² in England and Wales.

The deadline for responding to the Consultation was 9th June 2021. This is number 3 of our “Golden Triangle” which is currently covered by the Display Energy Certificate. We believe this consultation threatens the validity of DECs within the energy assessment industry. We have been clear within our consultation response that the DEC should be utilised and modernised to meet the proposed framework. Why reinvent the wheel when the industry is already qualified, experienced and quality assured in the discipline?

The Display Energy Certificate is a government approved methodology, present and established within England and Wales since 2008. The DEC produces an operational rating, based on key primary inputs such as: floor area, fuel consumption, location, and occupancy hours, along with an outdated benchmark system. The new performance based framework consists of these exact inputs to produce a rating, however the preferred output is a NABERS style star rating. However, both methodologies represent the same thing - an in-use energy assessment. So why has the DEC not been used to help develop the new framework?

The existing DEC methodology should be modernised and

suitably improved to incorporate the needs mentioned throughout the consultation, in order to achieve the government’s carbon budgets and acknowledge the role of DEC Assessors through the new framework. We must establish that creating a brand new system would be a waste of resources and a missed opportunity when we already have a widely recognised workforce and methodology that produces the similar results using the similar inputs. Government also have a brand new Energy Performance of Buildings Register, which is where all DECs are centrally lodged and retrieved, so a complete end to end process already exists.

We urge the government to invest in their existing methodology that is regulated, quality assured and supported via established schemes, who compete on both quality of service and price, and delivered through the use of a skilled work force - DEC Assessors.

Elmhurst is insisting that: n

We build upon the existing

infrastructure to remain inclusive and efficient n

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The DEC methodology is modernised and improved to meet the needs of the new framework with updated benchmarks Create a smarter and more engaging output document The ratings and relevant documentation are lodged to the EPBR Register Use past DEC data from the Register to assist the process of updating sector benchmarks Use the income from lodging to the Register to reinvest in to the analysis of data, creating tools like league table’s Reinforce a competitive market for all schemes, increasing opportunities for our energy assessor workforce NOT restricted to just one administrator Extend the remit of DEC Assessors to undertake assessments on all nondomestic buildings NOT just public buildings.

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TECHNICAL CORNER www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk

What do

U-value?

Dr. Richard Jack, Product Manager at Build Test Solutions

U-Values are used to define how easily heat transfers through building elements like walls, floors, roofs, windows and doors.

A low U-Value means low heat loss, and hence good thermal performance.

U-Value measurement can be used to provide quality assurance on new or newly retrofitted buildings, or better understand the real performance of walls, floors and roofs. But until now U-Value measurements have been few and far between, Build Test Solutions are trying to address this by making tools that are more accessible and easy to use including the exciting new Heat3D iOS app.

In an existing building, it can be very difficult to determine the build-up of a construction in a non-destructive manner. For that reason, U-Values are often estimated based on the age and approximate construction type of an element or building, as in RdSAP. These estimates are determined from lookup tables, with the tables themselves informed by calculations for similar walls and previous measurements studies for samples of similar walls.

U-Value calculations and lookup tables are valuable tools to help understand and design buildings, but are naturally limited in how accurately they will work for an individual building. Error and uncertainty is introduced through a number of sources.

This means that the actual U-Value of an element is not as predicted or designed.

Unexpected performance can mean unintended consequences,

and incorrect U-Values are no different. If the U-Value of an element is higher (worse) than expected, this means additional heat loss and could in turn lead to issues with condensation or mould growth. If the U-Value of an element is lower (better) than expected prior to a retrofit, it could mean that the expected benefit in energy and cost savings are not delivered in practice.

All of these factors make in-situ measurement a valuable and insightful tool. By knowing the actual performance the building owner and user can get quality assurance on works carried out, the thermal comfort and energy demand of the space can be better understood and controlled, and designers can create more informed retrofits and feedback can be delivered on what materials and processes work in practise.

Measurement has generally been carried out using ‘heat flux plates’.

These are coaster-sized sensors which measure heat flow through them and the surface they’re attached to by very accurately measuring the temperature difference between one side and the other. A complication is that heat is stored in the material of

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the wall as well as transferred through it, for that reason the heat flux plates are generally temporarily attached to the inside surface of building elements for around 1 week. By also measuring the temperature on the inside and outside of the element the rate of heat transfer through it can be measured, this is the U-Value.

Heat flux plate measurement is well established and a testing methodology is laid down by the International Organization for Standardization. Build Test Solutions provide a U-Value measurement kit which enables users to easily carry out measurements to this standard through a hardware set and online dashboard. Measurements using heat flux plates have played an important role in informing assumptions within the SAP methodology and helping to understand how buildings really work.

Even heat flux plate measurements have limitations though, in particular the measurement is somewhat invasive and time-consuming, while the result is only for a very small section of the element

whereas we know elements are rarely uniform in nature and that performance typically varies across the surface.

The newly developed and patented Heat3D system addresses these issues. Heat3D includes an iOS application and hardware to measure the air and radiative temperatures in a room.

Using the Augmented Reality kit in the iOS device (iPhone or iPad), a user quickly builds a 3D model of a room. Infrared images are then ‘tiled’ onto that model using a FLIR One infrared camera plugged into the device, creating a 3D infrared model of the room.

Using its patented technology, Heat3D then quantifies the heat loss through each part of the external walls in the room. This survey takes 10-15 minutes to complete and crucially quantifies how much heat loss there is through the walls, which infrared images alone cannot do. Moving one step beyond that, a time lapse survey can be carried out over an hour to quantify the U-Value of each part of the external walls. Within a couple of hours therefore, the user knows the U-Value over the whole wall

and has a brilliant visual model to demonstrate this heat loss to a client.

Heat3D is a revolutionary new product which has been developed and validated by Build Test Solutions in collaboration with Electric Pocket Ltd and the University of Salford. Over the past three years hundreds of Heat3D measurements have been successfully compared with heat flux plate measurements in houses around the UK and in the Energy House research facility at the University of Salford. The underlying technology and science has been independently reviewed by the National Physics Laboratory. This painstaking research has delivered the evidence to be confident in the accuracy of measurements carried out with Heat3D. Over the coming winter, Build Test Solutions will be releasing Heat3D to engaged early adopters, if you are interested in being an early adopter and offering a new service to your clients please contact enquiries@buildtestsolutions.com.

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MEMBER’S CORNER www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk

An introduction to Elmhurst's U-Value Competency scheme

“I was just providing SAP calculations for a client but one day I added that I can also do U-Values and now I get around 5 emails from them each week.”

Aine Murray, Accredited OCDEA BPP Energy

Hi Aine, first of all why did you join the scheme?

I’m an accredited OCDEA so I was already doing SAP calculations for apartments and providing advice on U-Values. I would (and still do) get lots of questions relating to U-Values, such as ‘how much insulation are we allowed?’

Aine Murray is an accredited OCDEA for BPP Energy in Belfast. After six months of providing U-Values for clients she decided to take the plunge and join Elmhurst’s recognised U-Value competency scheme. We caught up with Aine to find out why she joined the scheme and how she found the process.

I think the Future Homes Standard has made builders and developers more aware of the changes happening in the industry and the effect that different components such as insulation will have on U-Values and overall compliance.

As a result, I thought it would be good to know more about U-Values as we were providing more and more advice to clients, which is why my manager suggested I join a U-Value scheme. When you type 'U-Value scheme' into Google, Elmhurst is one of the first to come up because it’s such a reputable scheme, so I booked my place on a course. And a plane ticket!

What was the process like?

I went on the U-Value course in February (2020) which was led by

Guy Fowler. It was only a day and Guy was great; he explained how to use the software step-by-step and how to provide U-Value calculations to clients. He was a brilliant help and it was a really detailed course.

At the end of the course Guy said: “Right! You know about U-Values now, if you want to join you can take the 10 test cases home”. So I took them home, completed them and passed first time.

What are the benefits of attending training?

I’m definitely surer of myself now that I’ve attended the course.

I’m a qualified OCDEA so we did cover U-Values during training but not in so much detail. I went on the U-Value course thinking ‘I’ll probably already know this’ but I learned so much and it gave me more confidence when doing calculations.

It was also nice to talk to other assessors from different parts of the industry in the breakout area.

You get to meet different people and find out about their line of work. I also love that we get to use the approved U-Value scheme member logo, which

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I’ve put on my email signature, as well as being listed as an approved provider of U-Value calculations.

How was getting to grips with the software?

I’ve used a lot of online software for U-Values in the past but you have to select boxes and it’s a bit restrictive. With Elmhurst’s U-Value calculator software you can go in and define the thickness of insulation etc.

It’s just more detailed.

You cover the software on the

course and Guy walks you through how to use it.

from them each week asking about U-Values.

What have been the main benefits of joining the scheme?

I'm also able to assist colleagues if a client hasn't included any information about U-Values, which means there's less back and forth.

Now that I’ve done the course and joined the scheme I’m more confident in my abilities and gained more work as a result. For example there was a client who we were providing SAP calculations for and I happened to drop in that we also provide U-Value calculations and that I’m part of a recognised scheme.

Now I get at least 5 emails

Interested in joining Elmhurst's U-Value Competency Scheme?

If you'd like to become a member of the Scheme, you must first attend a U-Value training course.

Visit the Training Calendar to book your place.

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Energy Matters | Issue 7 | 2021

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A spotlight on Technical Support

Jo Bailey, Domestic Energy Assessor support team

How to skip the queue in a couple of clicks!

Jo Bailey is one of our longestserving members of the Domestic Energy Assessor support team, having previously worked as an estate agent and professional model before joining Elmhurst in 2009. But our support team members do more than answer your queries over the phone and via email they’re also the authors of Elmhurst’s technical bulletins, such as Heating Systems, which Jo wrote last year.

Jo explains more about her role with Elmhurst’s technical support team, including how most of your questions can be answered in a few clicks!

How do you find working on support?

Very busy! As a team we typically get 2000 calls a week and 100

emails every day. Sometimes it feels that when I put the phone down I'm picking it straight back up again!

But despite being busy, we get some really nice people calling in and there’s a good vibe in the team and a good variation of knowledge as well.

What are the most common queries people ask about?

We get a lot of questions about acceptable evidence as well as rooms in the roof and heating especially electrical boilers.

Why did you write the Heating Systems webinar?

Because of all the calls we get!

When I’m on the phone listening to members I write down ideas about possible CPD courses, as well as future technical bulletins.

We’re really open to new ideas so if you feel like there’s an area where there’s not enough information, we really want to hear from you. Tell us your ideas!

How can people access support without phoning in or sending an email?

I would say that most answers to the questions we get can be found in the Technical Bulletins or manual. There’s a Technical Bulletin for pretty much everything, but we do get some questions that are too weird/ different and won’t be answered in a technical bulletin.

What’s the weirdest/ funniest question you’ve received?

Is it possible that there’s a room thermostat underneath the floorboards?

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Elmhurst fully supports the transition towards a cleaner, more sustainable future for the people living and working in Northern Ireland.

F E AT U R E www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk

Elmhurst Responds to Northern Ireland Energy Strategy educate consumers about energy efficiency and provide support to help them invest in improvements.

Stuart Fairlie, Technical and Operations Director

Elmhurst has submitted its response to the consultation on policy options for the new Energy Strategy for Northern Ireland.

The consultation, which was released back in March, establishes options to decarbonise Northern Ireland's energy sector by 2050. The country’s vision for net zero carbon and affordable energy has been split into five key principles which include: 1. Grow a Green Economy invest in green innovation, develop low carbon skills, maximise the economic impact of energy policies.

2. Do more with less - set clear direction for energy efficiency,

3. Replace fossil fuels with renewable energydecarbonise power, heat and transport.

4. Create a flexible and integrated energy system- ensure flexible markets and infrastructure, develop smart and digitised energy systems.

5. Placing you at the heart of our energy future - enable and protect consumers, make energy simple, ensure affordability and fairness Elmhurst fully supports the transition towards a cleaner, more sustainable future for the people living and working in Northern Ireland.

We thank our members for helping shape our response which can be summarised as follows.

Northern Ireland needs to: n

Create a medium-long term

plan to give certainty n n n

n n

Have no more ‘stop-start’ policies Have joined up policies and regulations that work together Build upon existing professionals and methodologies to improve all NI buildings Use Asset, Occupation and Metered (in-use) assessments Display all 3 metrics on EPCs carbon emissions (CO2), cost (£) and energy (kWh)

Stuart Fairlie, Technical and Operations Director of Elmhurst Energy welcomes the consultation and adds:

“By keeping it simple and building upon the excellent infrastructure that already exists, we can bring the pieces of jigsaw together and set long term commitments.

Industry and all stakeholders will be able to deliver this for the Northern Ireland. communities.”

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Energy Matters | Issue 7 | 2020

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Back to the classroom So here we are in August. COVID restrictions seem to be being lifted and hopefully a return, be it gradual, to some form of normality is well on its way. It’s been anything but normal for the training department here at Elmhurst Energy, but I am delighted to say that we have risen to all the challenges set out, and adapted to ensure we are able to meet the requirements of our members.

Mitesh Nathwani, Training Manager

One of the biggest changes we made was to move our popular classroom based courses online.

Working tirelessly, we adapted these courses in a matter of a weeks, making most of them available on our website as soon as lockdown kicked in. This involved implementing new systems, retraining our support

and training teams, as well as dealing with the implications the new systems would have on our accounts and accreditation departments. Above all, the most important part was to ensure the customer journey was as good as what our assessors know and expect of us.

Training has taken off Over the last 18 months or so, we have seen a real upturn in the amount of people doing training of one sort or another. Initially there seem to be a huge number of assessors completing online CPD courses due to the lockdown and not being able to get out and about carrying out Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs).

Being in lockdown enabled assessors to catch up with their CPD hour requirements. To help with this we also sent out some free videos for each strand.

As the months went on and we slowly started to open up and the government introduced the

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stamp duty holiday, we found the numbers of houses being bought and sold increasing, thus leading to an increase in people wanting to enter the industry and become energy assessors.

We got to a point where we had to take on extra trainers to meet the demand, which was a challenge - albeit a good one.

Another reason we have done so well is that, unlike before, the assessors are now able to complete our variety of courses from the comfort of their home or office. Whereas previously they had to travel to Lutterworth or to one of our venues around the country, this new way was saving them time and money on travel and overnight stays. I know all of the above points towards online courses being the way forward and the new norm. To some extent that is true but we have found that there is still a demand for classroom based training.

The majority of the trainers and learners we asked have stated that although online courses serves a purpose and works out better in terms of time and

money, the one thing they all said they missed was the banter, the interaction, and networking that comes from being in a classroom environment. Plus it’s a lot harder to read body language and gauge peoples interest from a screen.

Return to classroom training Over the past 2 months we have started a gradual return to classroom based training with the Psi-Value course and the Domestic Energy Assessor course.

Each course has been sold out and more courses are being added every week. It would be great to be able to return to pre-COVID numbers but currently we are operating the classroom courses with restricted numbers to ensure social distancing takes place.

Overall, the past 12 to 18 months have brought about many challenges and at the same time, given us the opportunity to grow and develop our range of courses.

The online courses have done far better than we ever expected and surpassed all our expectations.

We have also been privileged to have been chosen to deliver training for the Government's

Green Homes Grant project and be able to play a part in helping the number of Retrofit Assessors grow in England and also help those out of work to get a step into the industry as Domestic Energy Assessors and Retrofit Assessors.

As we now return to some form of normality we will be able to offer a full spectrum of training courses and ways of being trained thus meeting the requirements of all our assessors.

Proof of this is the fact that many companies are now approaching us to carry out training for their teams whether that be an online course or classroom course, either at our offices or theirs. It’s been a rollercoaster of a time and I do believe as a training department we still haven’t seen the end of the effects of COVID but I do believe things will only get better and our offering will grow. That said, please take care and look after yourselves and I look forward to seeing you at one of our courses in the near future.

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Energy Matters | Issue 7 | 2021

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Market data

Existing Dwellings Volume of EPC lodgements and residential house sales on a rolling 12 month basis (by quarter).

Martyn Reed, Managing Director

n

Volume of EPC lodgements on a 12 month rolling basis

n

Volume of Residential housesales on a 12 month rolling basis

Commentary

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.

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.

COVID-19 has obviously had a major impact on the construction, housing and energy assessment markets which is reflected in each of the charts. Some of the data related to new build homes within the devolved authorities has not been updated since December 2020 and estimates have been used.

For the last five years house sales have been relatively consistent at around 1.19 million per year. Due to COVID the market fell away in March, but recovered

by July and has continued to grow dramatically ever since. Volumes in the 12 months to June 2021 are 10% higher than the previous peak in March 2016, which was just prior to when stamp duty for buy-to-let purchases was increased.

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. In March and April 2020 the volume dropped drastically, then tracked the residential sales until May 2021, when demand appears again to be softening which might be due to the end of the Stamp Duty discount in England.

Outlook With the stamp duty discount coming to an end maybe the demand for EPCs will soften from a near time record. Fortunately as lockdown restrictions are eased other reasons to do an EPC, such as those for social housing, are likely to boost demand.

Government initiatives, such as MEES, should also keep demand high.

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New Build / On Construction Volume of residential house starts and completions on a rolling 12 month basis (by quarter).

Outlook For several months it was concerning that house starts are so far behind completions with the obvious conclusion that this would impact EPCs in the coming months. Fortunately this situation is now correcting itself and starts have grown by 11% since September 2020, however this is still nearly half of the government’s 300,000 per annum target.

As the demand for homes continues to be strong, and housebuilders start working on new sites, it is likely to remain a busy time for on-construction assessors.

Non-Domestic/Commercial buildings 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. n

Volume of residential house starts on a rolling 12 month basis

n

Volume of residential house completion on a rolling 12 month basis

Data for Scotland and Wales is estimated since December 2020.

Volume of on-construction (new build residential) EPCs in the UK issued on a rolling 12 month basis.

n n

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 n

Volume of on-construction (new build residential) EPCs in the UK issued on a rolling 12 month basis

Commentary Starting before COVID-19, house starts have fallen back dramatically from their 204,000 peak in December 2018 to a six year low of 153,000 in September 2020.

Fortunately since then starts have enjoyed a six months of strong growth and now stand at 170,047.

House completions peaked at 214,000 in December 2019 but were then significantly impacted by Covid19. Recovery was slow for the remainder of 2020 but surged ahead in the first quarter of 2021.

Volume of EPCs in the last twelve months fell to 246,000 from its peak of 300,000, flattened and then grew rapidly, tracking house completions, to reach 292,149 - just 5% down from pre Covid levels.

Regular readers will remember that last quarter’s magazine showed a very sorry set of graphs. Since February 2021 commercial sales have risen by nearly 20%, although still 25% down from March 2013 and 11% down from before the pandemic.

The impact on EPCs has been similarly dramatic with the volume of EPCs recovering significantly in recent months but still 4% down on pre-COVID and 29% down on the heady days of December 2017.

Outlook We are all hopeful that the recent resurgence is the start of a trend but with continued uncertainty in the business community, hybrid working and problems in retail and hospitality caused by COVID, it is difficult to imagine that there will be any major improvements in the short term. However as an EPC is required whenever there is change of owner or tenant this may be some small piece of good news for energy assessors.

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For further information about the services that Elmhurst Energy provides please visit:

www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk or call:

01455 883 250