TechnicalBulletinNon Domestic Energy Assessment (NDEA)

APRIL 2016

Stroma Technical Bulletin - NDEAApril 2016 | Bulletin: Spring | Version 1.0

Stroma Technical Bulletin - NDEA - April 2016 | Bulletin: Spring | Version 1.02

New website for UK-NCM – new version of iSBEM 5.2.g

BRE have recently launched a new website: www.uk-ncm.org.uk.

The website contains the new release of iSBEM_v5.2.g which implements the Scottish 2015 NCM and can be used for assessing compliance with the Scotland 2015 Section 6 reports. iSBEM_v5.2.g should be used for the following purposes of analysis:

n Compliance with Part L 2013 in Englandn EPC Englandn Compliance with Part L 2014 in Walesn EPC Walesn Compliance with Scotland 2015 Section 6 reportsn EPC Scotland n Green Deal Assessments for buildings in England or Walesn Jersey 2007 Building Bye-Laws Part 11

iSBEM 4.1.e should still be used for EPC assessment in Northern Ireland.

Please ensure you are using the most up to date version of the software.

Site Notes for Off-Plan AssessmentsPlease note, in accordance with our EA Monitoring Procedure- NDEA Levels 3 & 4, Site Notes are a Minimum Evidence Requirement for audit for Off-Plan Assessments. While it is not a requirement to visit the site, the information gathered from your clients should be summarised and presented for audit in addition to the other documents required for audit. The Site Notes should detail Building Type, All Construction Types, HVAC, DHW, Lighting etc. The Site Notes should also record justifications of any decision making, reflective thought, or an application of a particular convention.

Shell and CoreThe issue of how to handle a ‘Shell and Core’ building was recently discussed at a conventions meeting. It was agreed by DCLG and all schemes that a Shell and Core building related specifically to a new-build in which the ‘first fit-out’ had not been completed. Existing buildings which have been stripped of their services are therefore not to be considered a ‘Shell and Core’ building. If an EPC is required for a Shell and Corebuilding, any gaps within the Building Services should be filled in by assuming a fit-out that is the most energy intensive fit-out allowed under Part L (assessors should confer with the Non-Domestic Building Services Compliance Guide for this).

In circumstances where an existing building (not shell and core) has had part or all of its services stripped out, assessors should follow Convention where details of the services are missing (See Conventions 6.06, 6.11, 7.05). Information contained in any proposed fit-out work should not be used in any circumstances; if the client wishes to have an EPC reflective of the building once fit-out work is completed, a voluntary EPC should be commissioned once the fit-out work is carried out.

Lodgement ErrorsIt has come to our attention, from various phone calls to our Technical Support team, that some assessors are experiencing error notifications when completing lodgements. We would ask, that if you receive an error message when attempting to lodge (a common message is “Lodgement failed - RRN already exists”), to check the Landmark website to see whether the lodgement has gone through successfully. Please do not try adjusting the inspection date and relodging as this will potentially lodge another certificate and your account could be charged for both lodgements. If you are unsure of whether a report has lodged successfully or not, please contact the Technical Support team on ext. 610.

CPD ModulesStroma will shortly be trialling new CPD modules which will be released to certain assessors that are failing audits for common reasons. These CPD Modules are designed to improve the assessors’ knowledge of the evidence requirements for audit and also particular conventions that are not being applied correctly. The CPD Modules will also be available to download from the Stroma members area and any assessor is welcome to read the modules and answer the related questions at the end. For assessors that are failing audits for specific related reasons, these CPD Modules will be mandatory to complete and submit in order to demonstrate an understanding of the issues highlighted in their audit feedback. If you have further questions regarding this, or have suggestions of the type of topics you would like to see covered in these CPD Modules, please email technicalsupport@stroma.com.

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Key Conventions Explained

Convention 2.03 – Air PermeabilityThe Air Permeability figure within the software should be amended to an appropriate value for the building following the guidelines given in this convention. If you are entering a figure not provided within the ‘default’ values given in this convention, or for figures less than 10m3/h/m2, it must be supported with an Air Pressure Test Certificate from a verified source.

If an Air Pressure Test Certificate is not available, or you cannot provide it as evidence, then the below values should be used:

10m3/h/m2 – Buildings greater than 500m2 built to 2002 Regulations (or later).

15m3/h/m2 – Buildings less than or equal to 500m2 built to 2002 Regulations (or later) and any sized building built to 1995 Regulations.

25m3/h/m2 – Buildings built to pre-1995 Regulations.

35m3/h/m2 – Buildings built to pre-1995 Regulations and where evidence of high permeability exists - eg. Large gaps within walls, single skin metal clad structures, large roller shutter doors etc.

Justification for the Air Permeability figure used should be recorded within your Site Notes.

Convention 6.12 – Kitchen S.F.PFor all cases when an exhaust system is identified within a kitchen and specific details of the fan are unknown, the defualt S.F.P (Specific Fan Power) should be adjusted in order to remove a degree of the process power of the fan itself. As such, the default S.F.P values within kitchens should be modified to the below:

0.4 – for circumstances where the fan is within the zone.

0.6 – for circumstances where the fan is outside of the zone.

Please note: As with all exhaust calculations, where details of the fan are unavailable, the local mechanical exhaust rate (measured in l/s/m2) should be calculated using the following formula:

Room Volume (L x W x H) x Air Changes = Volumetric Flow Rate (m3/hr)

(Volumetric Flow Rate x 1000) / 3600 = Litres/s Litres/s / floor area = Local Mechanical Exhaust Rate (l/s/m2)

A spreadsheet calculator can be downloaded from the below link:

https://stromamembers.net/files/comm/documents/Zone-Data-and-Supporting-Calculations.xls

Convention 6.11 – Zones without fixed ConditioningConvention 6.11 highlights the process that must be followed when coming across a zone(s) without any form of fixed conditioning. The flowchart in Appendix 10.07 of the Conventions Document shows the approach that an assessor should take in these circumstances.

The convention currently provides 5 activity types for which it is acceptable for the activity concerned to have no conditioning.

The 5 activity types listed are as follows:n Circulation Areasn Plant Roomsn Store Rooms and Warehouse Storagen Industrial Process Arean Car Park

Where a zone contains no fixed conditioning, and is identified as one of these 5 activity types, the zone should be identified as a ‘Zone without HVAC’ (provided Indirect Conditioning does not apply. See Convention 6.13). For zones identified with all other activity types (activities not listed in the convention) there is an expectation for these areas to be conditioned.

As such, if no conditioning exists within these zones and Indirect Conditioning does not apply (see Convention 6.13), a Notional HVAC system must be created and assigned to these areas.

The system should be entered as follows:

Other Local Room Heater - Fanned, Room Heater, Grid Supplied Electricity, Efficiency 1 (ie. 100%).

It is not acceptable to select a software default system such as ‘Heating only – Electric Resistance’. Application of this convention should be noted within your Site Notes.

Please note: Not assigning a Notional system, as highlighted above, to zones with an activity type that have an expectation for conditioning is currently one of the most common reasons for audit failure. If you have any questions or require further clarity on this, please contact our Technical Support team.

Stroma Technical Bulletin | April 2016 | Bulletin: Spring | Version 1.0

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