HKGBC Benchmarking and Energy Saving Tool – Commercial ...

Hong Kong Green Building Council Limited

HKGBC Benchmarking and Energy Saving Tool – Commercial Buildings (Office/Retail) Manual for Applicants

Version 1.0.1 December 2017

Funding Support:

| Version 1.0.1 | December 2017 | Copyright © 2017 Hong Kong Green Building Council Limited. All rights reserved.


HKGBC Benchmarking and Energy Saving Tool – Commercial Buildings (Office/Retail) – Manual for Applicants

Contents Page

1 INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Background 1 1.2 Benefits of HK BESTCOM 1 1.3 Purpose of this Applicant Manual 2

2 THE RATING, LABELLING & CERTIFICATION SCHEME 3

2.1 Scheme Overview 3 2.2 Eligibility for the Scheme 4 2.3 Preparation of Information 6 2.4 Benefits to the Applicant 7 2.5 Fees 8 2.6 Label Categories and Criteria 10 2.7 Validity of Certificate and Label 11

3 APPLICATION PROCESS FOR THE ENERGY PERFORMANCE CERTIFICATE 12

3.1 Free Benchmarking Tool 12 3.2 First-time Application and Renewal of Certificate 17 3.3 Two Types of Schemes 17 3.4 One-Step Assessment 18 3.5 Two-Step Assessment 34 3.6 Appeal Application 35 3.7 Withdrawal of Application 35 3.8 Liability Waiver and Disclosure of the Scheme 35

4 ENGAGING BESTAA FOR THE APPLICATION 36

4.1 The Role of the BESTAA 36 4.2 Qualification Requirements for BESTAA 36 4.3 Engagement of BESTAA 36

5 RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF APPLICANT AND USE OF ENERGY PERFORMANCE CERTIFICATES AND LABELS 38

5.1 Rights and Obligations 38 5.2 Use of Energy Performance Certificate and Label 38 5.3 Termination of Use of Energy Performance Certificate

and Label 42



HKGBC Benchmarking and Energy Saving Tool – Commercial Buildings (Office/Retail) – Manual for Applicants

Appendices

Appendix A

Application Process Flowchart

A.1 Application Process for HK BESTCOM

Appendix B

Liability Waiver and Disclaimer

B.1 Liability Waiver and Disclaimer

Appendix C

Online Tool - Application Stages for the Scheme

C.1 Online Tool – Application Stages for the Scheme

Appendix D

Detail Information Reference for HK BESTCOM

D.1 Detail Information Reference for HK BESTCOM

Appendix E

Certificate and Label of HK BESTCOM

E.1 Certificate Label and Format


Hong Kong Green Building Council Limited HKGBC Benchmarking and Energy Saving Tool – Commercial Buildings (Office/Retail) – Manual for Applicants

1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background The Hong Kong Green Building Council Limited (HKGBC) operates the HKGBC Benchmarking and Energy Saving Tool - Commercial Buildings (Office/Retail), also known as “HK BESTCOM”.

The development of Rating, Labelling & Certification scheme of HK BESTCOM (hereinafter named as the “Scheme”) is to provide the building owners with a direction for improvement in Energy Efficiency and drive the market towards a more Energy Efficient goal in Hong Kong. It not only provides the Applicants with an understanding of the building’s energy performance as compared to the peers but also points out a direction for improvement. A Certificate and Label of the Scheme with appropriate class will be awarded to the eligible Applicant who fulfils certain energy performance of commercial buildings (office/retail) under the Scheme.

Under the Scheme, the HK BEST Authorised Assessor (hereinafter named as “BEST Authorised Assessor” or “BESTAA”) is required to provide independent verification services to the Applicant. This requires reviewing electricity and utility bills, documents to substantiate building energy use, number and type of energy end-use equipment, the assessed energy performance rating and the possible future energy improvement measures according to the “HKGBC Benchmarking and Energy Saving Tool” (hereinafter named as the “HK BEST”) so as to fulfil the application requirements under the Scheme. The whole application process of HK BESTCOM is included in Appendix A for reference.

The web address of HK BESTCOM is http://hkbest.hkgbc.org.hk/com.

1.2 Benefits of HK BESTCOM The building owner applying for the Scheme (hereinafter named as the Applicant) can evaluate the building operational efficiency against peers in the market. The Applicant can also utilise the “What-If” Function which is unique among existing benchmarking tools worldwide. This “What-If” Function provides Applicants with a direction for improvement in building operational performance, which may result in reduction in operating energy and cost.


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1.3 Purpose of this Applicant Manual This manual is prepared to help the Applicant to understand the Scheme and the independent verification services the Applicant should expect from their BESTAA. The topics covered in this manual include:

• The Rating, Labelling & Certification Scheme • Application Process for the Energy Performance Certificate • Engaging BESTAA for the Application • Rights and Obligations of Applicant and Use of Energy Performance

Certificates and Labels


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2 THE RATING, LABELLING & CERTIFICATION SCHEME

2.1 Scheme Overview

2.1.1 Objectives The objective of the Scheme is to promote better energy performance for commercial buildings (office/retail) buildings by:

1. Providing an online tool for the building owners to measure and compare their Energy Consumption to their market peers and to identify potential energy improvement measures to enhance performance;

2. Give an appropriate class of recognition to commercial buildings (office/retail) which have achieved outstanding energy performance amongst its market peers while accounting for variations in Energy Consumption across different building types through the issuance of Certificate and Label.

2.1.2 Online Assessment Tools Two assessment tools are available to assist the Applicants:

1. Free Benchmarking Tool This tool assesses the general energy performance of the building based on basic building characteristics and physical constraints. A general rating will be given to the Applicants for reference. This tool is free of charge and accessible to general public;

2. The Scheme This Scheme applies to the registered (paid) Applicants only, which allows the Applicant to engage a BESTAA for a detailed evaluation and verification of the building’s energy systems and obtain recommendation(s) on Energy Management Opportunities (EMOs) to improve the building Energy Efficiency. Two types of Assessments are available for the Scheme:

• One-step Assessment Application

In the 'One-step Assessment' application, a final labelling result will be issued upon the completion of the assessment. The Applicant will obtain the official certificate through the online platform and will be given advice on possible measures to improve the building energy performance.

• Two-step Assessment Application


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In the 'Two-step Assessment' application, a 'preliminary' labelling result will be provided upon completion of the '1st step' assessment. The Applicant can choose to accept the 1st assessment result and obtain the official certificate, or pursue a 2nd assessment through implementation of energy saving measures to improve the building energy performance within a period of 36 months; based on the 2nd assessment result, the official certificate will be awarded to the Applicant.

A participant who is interested in the Scheme can make an application by creating an Applicant Account and then completing the application procedures as described in Section 3 below. To this end, the Applicant needs to engage a BESTAA to assess the energy performance as required for the application.

2.2 Eligibility for the Scheme Eligible Applicants for the Scheme:

The Building Owner, Deed of Mutual Covenant (DMC) Managers, Owners’ Corporations registered under the Building Management Ordinance (Cap. 344) or owners’ organisations of commercial buildings. An application can also be submitted by the property management company on behalf of an Applicant. The copy of documentary proof of the identity shall be provided upon request. The HKGBC reserves the right to determine the eligibility of any Applicant.

The list for eligible and non-eligible buildings is given below:

Eligible Buildings:

1. Commercial Building (office/retail) Served by Centralised Air-conditioning System:

This option covers pure office building, pure retail building, mixed-use building with both office and retail portions. No limit on area percentage is set for office and retail portion as long as the majority of the building is served by a centralised air-conditioning system. The eligible major type* of air-side system should be one of the following:

• AHU (CAV/VAV)

• FCU

* Major type refers to the one type of air-side system which consumes the most energy in central building service installations

2. Office Building Served by Decentralised** Air-conditioning System


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The building is eligible for this option only if the office area >40% of the building’s internal floor area (IFA) and larger than areas specific for other major uses based on IFA.

** Decentralised air-conditioning system refers to unitary or split-type systems

Single-tenancy buildings can apply for the scheme as long as a reasonable split can be achieved for energy uses by the tenant and by the Central Building Services Installations (CBSI). The Applicant should engage the BESTAA to justify and verify the split based on the data from energy meters. If this method is adopted, the BESTAA should provide sufficient justification of the calculation by comparing the energy meter data to the values appeared in the utility bills. Upon submission, both utility bills and energy meter data should be provided with detailed narrative of the calculation. More details regarding using the energy meter data for single-tenancy buildings is given in the Manual for Assessors. For multi-tenancy buildings, the utility bills should be provided as the sole evidence of energy use by the CBSI.

Non-eligible Building:

• Building with provision of condenser water only

• Building with cooling served by district cooling system (DCS)

• Building sharing use of chiller plant(s) with any other building(s)

• Building with vacancy rate exceeding 20% of the total rentable area at any point within the past twelve months prior to submission of the Application

The details of eligibility for the Scheme are also provided in the Introduction and FAQ sections of the HK BESTCOM website (http://hkbest.hkgbc.org.hk/com).

EUI Adjustment for Building with 24-hour A/C

As some of the commercial buildings (office/retail) in Hong Kong offer 24-hour A/C to the tenants, which will potentially increase the energy intensity of these buildings due to the additional energy consumption by the cooling plant serving tenants with cooling demand after normal office hours. These often include server rooms, computer rooms etc. running 24 hours per day. The Scheme allows buildings with such provision to adjust their EUI values by extracting the additional energy consumption by 24-hour A/C so that the comparison between buildings with or without 24-hour A/C becomes more reasonable. Using the energy meter data or conducting measurement is both acceptable for this process. Relevant works should


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be carried out by BESTAA with details described in the manual for Assessors.

2.3 Preparation of Information For a typical application, the Applicant shall prepare the following information and pass to the assessor:

a) Business Registration Certificate copy (PDF);

b) Past twelve months’ electricity and utility bills issued by utility companies (PDF);

c) As-built Architectural Layout (in AutoCAD format) of the building.

d) Schematics for air-side and water-side of the A/C system and electrical system.

To facilitate BESTAA’s preparation of the application and verification of the building information by the BESTAA and the HKGBC, it is strongly recommended to provide the required As-built Architectural Layout in AutoCAD Format. If As-built Architectural Layout in AutoCAD Format is not available, the Applicant is to ensure that the submitted As-built Architectural Layout is of reasonable standard for the BESTAA and the HKGBC to assess and verify the floor area dimensions (For more details, please refer to Section 3.4).

For the schematics for air-side and water-side of the A/C system and electrical system, the Applicant should compress multiple files into one .rar /.zip file for ease of upload. PDF format is acceptable as long as clear mark-ups can be provided to justify the major type of air-side system.

If the assessed building is a single-tenancy building and energy meter data is required to split the energy use by tenant and CBSI, the Applicant shall prepare and provide the following information to BESTAA:

• Energy meter point schedule for tenant area and CBSI; • Electrical schematic for CBSI and tenant; • Energy meter record of CBSI and tenant covering the same period as

utility bills;

If EUI adjustment for 24-hour A/C is required, either energy meter data or measurement data can be used for submission. The Applicant should prepare and provide the following information to BESTAA:

• Energy meter point schedule for cooling systems (applicable if use energy meter data)

• Annual energy meter record and calculations of annual energy consumption by 24-hour A/C (applicable if use energy meter data)


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• Electrical schematic for cooling systems

2.4 Benefits to the Applicant The Applicant would enjoy the following benefits from participating in the Scheme:

• Obtain useful energy saving advice through the use of HK BESTCOM. HK BESTCOM would help in analysing the building Energy Consumption, and provide improvement recommendations for potential energy savings to the Applicant. By implementing the improvement measures, the Applicant can obtain energy bill savings and thereby increase competitiveness.

• Obtain independent and professional recognition of the energy performance of the building. Based on the energy performance, a building earns a Certificate and Label with one of the five performance rating levels. The Certificate and Label can be displayed in public areas of the building, on name cards and on promotional materials. Standardised artwork of the attained Label will be provided to the successful Applicant by the HKGBC for the above mentioned uses.

• Attend, at the HKGBC’s discretion, award presentation ceremony or experience sharing sessions in front of various media and publications where appropriate, to build up the image of “Green/Sustainable Corporate”.

• Contribute to the development of better corporate social responsibility through efficient energy use, leading to reduced CO2 emissions from power generation.


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2.5 Fees In order to join the Scheme, two types of fees are required, namely the “Application Fee” and the “Renewal Fee”. The former is for the first-time application and second is for the renewal of the certificate every 5 years.

The fee structure of the Scheme is provided below and available on the HK BESTCOM website for the Scheme (http://hkbest.hkgbc.org.hk/com):

Table 1. Fee for the Scheme for the HKGBC members

Project Scale

Gross Floor Area (m2)

HKGBC Member Application/Renewal Fee (One-step) (HK$)

Application/Renewal Fee (Two-step) (HK$)

Appeal Fee (HK$)

Small (S)

49,999 and below $7,500 $14,000

$7,500 Med (M) 50,000 – 199,999 $10,000 $19,000

Large (L)

200,000 and above $12,500 $22,500

Table 2. Fee for the Scheme for non-HKGBC members

Project Scale

Gross Floor Area (m2)

Non-HKGBC Member Application/Renewal Fee (One-step) (HK$)

Application/Renewal Fee (Two-step) (HK$)

Appeal Fee (HK$)

Small (S)

49,999 and below $9,000 $16,000

$9,000 Med (M) 50,000 – 199,999 $12,000 $20,000 Large (L)

200,000 and above $14,000 $25,000

Table 3. Promotion package with discounts

Promotion Package No. of Application Quota Purchased Discount on Total Application Fees 5 10% off 10 15% off 15 20% off

For details regarding the fee and promotional packages available for HK BESTCOM, please visit our website (http://hkbest.hkgbc.org.hk/com/intro/intro-fees.html).

The Applicant may need to pay the verification fee to the appointed BESTAA. No fixed amount is provided for this verification fee and it is subject to the agreement between the Applicant and appointed BESTAA.


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http://hkbest.hkgbc.org.hk/com/intro/intro-fees.html


Please refer to Section 4 for more details of engaging BESTAA for the application.


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2.6 Label Categories and Criteria The operational energy performance rating is determined by comparing the energy performance of the building with the distribution of buildings of similar characteristics. More specifically, the benchmarking tool will use the efficiency ratio between the measured EUI and the EUI representing the market norm to identify the percentile of the assessed building. The smaller the percentile, the better the energy performance. Based on this percentile, a rating label will be given accordingly. For example, if a building reaches the top 10th percentile, this implies that its energy performance is better than 90% of its peers and outperformed by only 10%.

Table 4. Label Categories & Criteria

Calculated Percentile of Operational Energy

Performance

Free Benchmarking

Tool Rating

Certificate & Label Rating to be

Obtained after the Verified

Assessment

Reach Top 10th Percentile of range of data

Good

Platinum

Reach Top 20th Percentile of range of data Gold

Reach Top 30th Percentile of range of data Silver

Average

Reach Top 40th Percentile of range of data Bronze

Reach Top 50th Percentile of range of data Green

Below 50th Percentile of range of data Below Average No Rating

If a commercial building (office/retail) obtains “No Rating” for the Scheme, no Certificate and Label will be given. The rating criteria may be subject to change from time to time in consideration of various factors such as market trends and technology advancement.


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2.7 Validity of Certificate and Label The Certificate and Label will remain valid for 5 years unless suspended or terminated due to violation or non-compliance with the Scheme requirement. The Certificate and Label shall expire immediately and shall become invalid immediately upon change of information for the Application such as ownership (Business Registration) of the building, any material renovation works to the Applicant’s building and/or any material modification to the Applicant’s electrical and mechanical equipment, as determined in the sole discretion of the HKGBC. The Applicant is required to renew the Certificate and Label upon expiration or choose to re-apply for the Scheme if the Certificate and Label have been terminated. A new application needs to be submitted together with the updated documents. The different labels are presented in Appendix E.


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3 APPLICATION PROCESS FOR THE ENERGY PERFORMANCE CERTIFICATE

3.1 Free Benchmarking Tool The HK BESTCOM provides a Free Benchmarking Tool, which allows users to assess the building’s energy performance on-line so as to understand the energy performance of his/her building. All users are welcome to use the Free Benchmarking Tool to learn more about how their building’s energy performance by comparing to the peers.


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Figure 1. Free Benchmarking Tool introduction page

Under Free Benchmarking Tool, the user needs to select one option from the two eligible building types (Figure 2):

- Option 1: Commercial Buildings (Office/Retail) Served by Centralised Air-conditioning System

- Option 2: Office Building Served by Decentralised Air-conditioning System


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Figure 2. Two options for eligible building types

The user is advised to prepare the following information if the Option 1 is selected (Figure 3):

1. Annual total Energy Consumption of past 12 months 2. Internal Floor Area (IFA) & Gross Floor Area (GFA) of the building 3. % area of total building entity served by CBSI with the following

major usage - Office Area - Car Park Area - Back of House Area - Retail (Shopping & Leisure) Area - Restaurant Area - Others Area

4. Portion of the building entity being Common Area 5. Biweekly Normal Operating Hours for Office Work 6. Biweekly Normal Operating Hours for Retail 7. Major Type of Air-side System serving the AC area of building entity

(FCU or AHU (CAV/VAV)

The user is advised to prepare the following information if the Option 2 is selected (Figure 4):

1. Annual total Energy Consumption of past 12 months 2. Internal Floor Area (IFA) & Gross Floor Area (GFA) of the building 3. % area of total building entity served by CBSI with the following

major usage - Office Area - Car Park Area - Back of House Area


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- Retail (Shopping & Leisure) Area - Restaurant Area - Others Area

4. Portion of the building entity being Common Area 5. Biweekly Normal Operating Hours for Office Work

Figure 3. Free Benchmarking Tool input for Option 1


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Figure 4. Free Benchmarking Tool input for Option 2

The Free Benchmarking Tool will then produce generic energy performance rating of the building in 3 rating levels – Good, Average and Below Average. It is recommended that the Applicant be able to achieve Good or Average in the Free Benchmarking Tool before applying for the Scheme.


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Figure 5. Free Benchmarking Tool Assessment Result

3.2 First-time Application and Renewal of Certificate

The Applicant is required to engage a BESTAA to conduct independent assessment and verification for both new and renewal applications of the Scheme. Upon receipt of application, relevant documents, and payment based on the fee structure, the application will be assessed and the appropriate level of Certificate and Label will be issued by the HKGBC based on the rating level in Section 2.6.

The Applicant is required to renew the Certificate and Label upon expiration or choose to re-apply for the Scheme if the Certificate and Label becomes invalid (Please refer to Section 2.7 for the information of “Validity of Certificate and Label”). A new application needs to be submitted together with the updated documents. Examples of the Application stages are provided in Appendix C.

3.3 Two Types of Schemes “One-Step Assessment” and “Two-Step Assessment” are available for facilitating the different needs of the Applicant. The Applicant may choose their preferred type of assessment upon the application of the Scheme. The application process flow chart of the “One-Step Assessment” and “Two-Step Assessment” can be found in Appendix A. The “Two-Step Assessment” begins the same as the “One-Step Assessment” and is differentiated by allowing the Applicant an additional stage to improve the building’s energy performance. For either assessment, the whole application process will finish when the HK BESTCOM Certificate and Label are issued.


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3.4 One-Step Assessment

Application Stage 1 – Registration of Account by Applicant After having read through and agreed to the Terms and Conditions (Figure 6), the Applicant shall create an account under the “Create Account” and provide basic information such as company name, address, contact information, the HKGBC membership number (if applicable), Internal Floor Area (IFA) and Gross Floor Area (GFA). The approved General Building Plan (GBP) with GFA indicated shall be uploaded for verification. The Applicant shall also select to go through One-Step or Two-Step Assessment. Since the Scheme requires an independent verification of energy performance data by a BESTAA, the Applicant is required to engage a BESTAA prior to joining the Scheme and input the Authorised Assessor Number of the appointed BESTAA for the application. The “Create Account” page is given below in Figure 7. To facilitate the selection of an appropriate BESTAA, the HKGBC provides a list of BESTAA on the HK BESTCOM website (http://hkbest.hkgbc.org.hk/com/list.html) for the Applicant to choose from.

A tick box (Figure 7) is also provided for the Applicant to confirm whether As-built Architectural Layout in AutoCAD format is available to facilitate the assessment and verification of building information. Remark is provided below to state the risk of not having the As-built Architectural Layout in AutoCAD format. The requirement of As-built Architectural Layout in PDF format is clearly stated if the AutoCAD format is not available for the application. The HKGBC shall approve the application based on the quality of the submitted drawing.

Figure 6. Applicant must read through Terms and Conditions and click “AGREE” in order to create Account


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Figure 7. “Create Account” page for the Application

Once the information for creating an account in Figure 7 is submitted by the Applicant and verified by the HKGBC, an email will be sent to the


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Applicant to acknowledge the receipt of the registration. The email also contains the user ID created by the Applicant upon registration and a temporary password with validity of 60 calendar days (start from the creation of the Applicant Account) to facilitate the Applicant in settling the payment. Additionally, the applicable registration fee will be advised in the email.

The Applicant will see the payment page (Figure 8) after logging in to the Applicant Account using the temporary password. The Applicant shall pay the application fee to the HKGBC via cheque, bank-in or online payment within 60 calendar days starting from the creation of account. If the payment is not made online, the Applicant will need to upload the bank-in slip or cheque image to the system. The User Account will be terminated when Applicant fails to meet the deadline.

Figure 8. Payment page for Applicant after logging in with temporary password for the first time

Application Stage 2 – Uploading Required Documents by the Applicant

Typical Process Once the payment of application fee is completed and verified by the HKGBC, a notification email will be sent to the Applicant informing that the account status is changed from temporary account to paid account, which allows the Applicant to proceed with the application. The Applicant can use the user ID and password received in Stage 1 to login to access the Scheme and start the application. The Applicant is required to upload the following documents:


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a) Business Registration Certificate copy (PDF);

b) Past twelve months’ electricity and utility bills issued by utility companies (PDF);

c) As-built Architectural Layout (in AutoCAD format) of the building with scale and clear indication of different areas included in the scope of assessment. Separate CD-ROM by courier may be required if the size of the CAD drawings exceeds limit.

d) Schematics for air-side and water-side of the A/C system and electrical system.

For As-built Architectural Layouts (in AutoCAD format), electricity and utility bills, the Applicant should compress multiple files into one .rar /.zip file for ease of upload. If CAD drawings are not available, the Applicant shall submit the best available PDF As-built Architectural Layouts. The BESTAA is to ensure that the As-built Architectural Layout is of reasonable standard for the BESTAA and the HKGBC to assess and verify the floor area dimensions. In this case, during the Application Stage, the Applicant is to submit the soft copy of the As-built Architectural Layout (PDF-format) with clear indication of the different types of floor area included in the scope of assessment, detailing all measurements necessary to facilitate the verification process. The As-built Architectural Layout (PDF-Format) is to be set at A4 or A3 size and MUST be with a scale of 1:100 or smaller (and should be of a rounded up scale with interval of 50 e.g. 1:150, 1:200), as appropriate. If the scale needs to be smaller than 1:200, a hard-copy is to be submitted to the HKGBC for review.

For the schematics for air-side and water-side of the A/C system and electrical system, the applicant should compress multiple files into one .rar /.zip file for ease of upload. PDF format is acceptable as long as clear mark-ups can be provided to justify the major type of air-side system.

Using Energy Meter Data for Single-tenancy Building If the assessed building is a single-tenancy building and energy meter data is required to split the energy use by tenant and CBSI, the following documents should be prepared by BESTAA for the Applicant to upload:

• Energy meter point schedule for tenant area and CBSI; • Electrical schematic for CBSI and tenant; • Energy meter record and calculations of total energy use by CBSI and

tenant covering the same period as utility bills; • Report of checking the accuracy of 10% energy meters.


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More details regarding the content of the report is described in the Manual for Assessor.

EUI Adjustment for Building with 24-hour A/C If EUI adjustment for 24-hour A/C is required, either energy meter data or measurement data can be used for submission. The following documents should be prepared by BESTAA for the Applicant to upload:

Use Energy Meter Data

• Energy meter point schedule for cooling systems; • Electrical schematic for cooling systems; • Energy meter record and calculations of total energy use by 24-hour

A/C covering the same period as utility bills; • Report for checking the accuracy of 10% energy meters. Use Measurement Data • Measurement report including methodology, measurement results,

calculation, photo, etc.; • Electrical schematic for cooling systems.

More details regarding the content of these documents will be given in the Assessor Manual.

Once the required documents are uploaded, the Applicant needs to click the “Pass to Assessor” button and the application will be passed to the appointed BESTAA automatically for completion of information, assessment and verification as required by the Scheme.

Please note the HKGBC shall approve the application based on the quality of submission on a case-by-case basis.

Application Stage 3 - Completion of the Detailed Information by the BESTAA The application is passed to the BESTAA who is responsible for the verification of the application by logging into the platform with his/her user ID and password.

The BESTAA is required to complete the following tasks in order to fulfil his/her responsibilities for assisting the Applicant to complete the application:

• To conduct an on-site visit to the target building, collect information of CBSI, equipment and actual operation of the building;

• To review and verify the required documents, including electricity and utility bills, floor plans with relevant area indicated;


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• To complete the HK BESTCOM in “Detailed Information” by inputting the detailed information of building CBSI for the relevant building type as mentioned in Section 3.1.

Figure 9. Select relevant building from the two options

If Option 1 is selected, the following information should be inputted:

1) Total Energy Consumption in the past 12 months [1] 2) Internal Floor Area & Gross Floor Area 3) Percentage of total building entity for:

• Office Area • Retail Area • Back of House Area • Restaurant Area • Car Park Area • Others Area

4) Common Area (as a percentage of Internal Floor Area) 5) Biweekly Normal Operating Hours for Office Work 6) Biweekly Normal Operating Hours for Retail 7) Type of air-conditioning, whether Centralised or Decentralised,

provided for the majority of the building 8) If centralised air-conditioning, type of major air-side system, whether

Air Handling Unit – AHU (CAV/VAV) or Fan Coil Unit - FCU 9) Provision of 24-hour air-conditioning for the office portion (Yes/No) 10) Major type of building facade (curtain wall/non-curtain wall) 11) Date of issue of occupation approval (occupation permit) (dd/mm/yyyy)

1 The submission of the application shall be completed no later than 6 months after the latest energy bill reference month


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12) Adoption of air-side heat recovery technology for HVAC system (YES/NO)

13) Adoption of free cooling strategy at office portion (YES/NO) 14) Adoption of natural ventilation strategy at office portion (YES/NO) 15) Annual Energy Consumption breakdown in terms of % devoted to:

• Lighting • Lift • Air-conditioning • Others

16) Lighting breakdown including area, biweekly operation hours, adoption of occupancy sensor and sub-total lighting power for:

• Office Floors - Corridor - Lift Lobby - Toilet (Office Area)

• Shopping, Leisure & Restaurant Floors - Corridor - Lift Lobby

• Other Areas - Car Park - Plant Room - Staircase - Toilet (Non-office Area)

• Miscellaneous 17) Lift breakdown

- Sub-total rated motor power, of all traction lifts - Biweekly operation hours of all traction lifts - Sub-total rated motor power, of all escalators and passenger

conveyors - Biweekly operation hours of all escalators and passenger

conveyors - Type of motor drive system the building is using for traction lifts?

(choose one of the following) o DC motor drive with generator set (DC M-G) o AC motor drive with variable voltage controller (ACVV) o AC motor drive with variable and variable frequency

controller (ACVVF)


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- Lift regeneration (YES/NO) - Does the escalators adopt any service-on-demand control?

(YES/NO) - If “Yes” What type of service-on-demand control does the

escalators use? (Automatic start/stop or Two-Speed escalator) 18) Monthly EUI of each of past 12 months 19) Air-Conditioning breakdown

- Oil-free chiller or non-oil-free chiller - Chiller heat rejection (Air-cooled or water-cooled) - Constant speed drive or variable speed drive - Chilled water supply: Constant/variable flow for

primary/secondary loop - Average Chiller Rated COP (coefficient of performance)

If Option 2 (Decentralised Offices) is selected, Question 6), 7) and 18) will not show up in the webpage. The web pages for Option 1 are given below in Figure 10.


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Figure 10. Input for Application Stage 3 (Option 1)


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Figure 10. Input for Application Stage 3 (Option 1) (continued)


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Figure 10. Input for Application Stage 3 (Option 1) (continued)

The web page also includes some automatic functions such as mouse-over function, slider, warnings, unit conversion etc., which assist the input process. Warnings include binding warnings, which prevent the user from submitting and seeing the result, and non-binding warnings, which remind the user that their input may be incorrect but do not limit access to the


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results. Appendix D provides a more detailed reference for this input page regarding the intent and usability. After finishing the input and clicking “SAVE,” the BESTAA will be taken to the result page of the HK BESTCOM.

Figure 11. Detail rating in the “Detail Result” page (example)

The results from the Detailed Information are more detailed grading than the Free Benchmarking Tool and will be used to determine the Energy Performance Certificate and Label, provided that all inputs are verified by the HKGBC. The BESTAA should refer to definitions provided in the HK BESTCOM Glossary when inputting information such as Internal Floor Area and % area of total building entity. Where there is uncertainty regarding the usage of a space, the BESTAA should mark clearly in the submitted plans and make a judgment call on the usage and provide accompanying justification.

Additionally, the Detailed Results will include a particularised benchmarking analysis which shows how the building’s energy use in the four major categories (lighting, lift/energy, air-conditioning and others) and on a monthly basis compares with a baseline from the Scheme database. This information (Figure 12) can be useful to the Applicant and Assessor in identifying areas in which the building may be performing better or worse than market peers.

Commercial Buildings (Office/Retail)


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Figure 12. Analysis charts for the “Detail Result” Page (example)

The “What-If” Function of the tool provides specific energy conservation advice for the Applicant. The “What-If” function requires a BESTAA to further input or select from various energy saving measures. The function will estimate the total potential energy savings from these energy saving measures and display the estimated Rating Label that the Applicant would attain if the selected energy saving initiatives were implemented. The more detailed and accurate the inputs are, the more accurate the estimated savings will be. The BESTAA can specify improvement measures on the following systems:


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Air-conditioning

The “What-If” Function will provide more efficient air-conditioning system configuration based on the input in Figure 10. The user can select the building’s system configurations and the chillers’ average (capacity weighted) rated COP. Options of oil free chillers and non-oil free chillers are available as well. Based on the input, the benchmarking tool will determine relative energy saving for the air-conditioning system.

Lighting

With many different types of spaces broken down, the target Lighting Power Density (LPD), lighting operation hours and discount factor for use of automatic sensor can be specified for each area type. The input LPD will be compared to the current condition, which is calculated from the input as shown in Figure 10. Referencing the Energy Consumption breakdown inputted in Question 8, the relative energy savings for the lighting system will be calculated.

Lift

For the lift, the improvement measures are available for traction lifts and escalators. For traction lifts, the options include changing the type of lift and using regenerative drive. For escalators, the options include two-step and automatic start/stop functions for the service on demand control. The relative savings will be calculated based on the selected options and the Energy Consumption breakdown inputted in Question 14 in Figure 10. If the building already adopts regenerative drives for the lift, which will be reflected in the input shown in Figure 10, no option for regenerative drive will be provided for the “What-If” function. If the building already adopts automatic start/stop escalators, no option for the escalators will be provided for “What-If” Function.


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Figure 13. Improvement Measures in “What-If” Function

The function will estimate the total potential energy savings from selected saving measures and display the estimated potential Rating Label that the

Improvement measures for air-conditioning system

Improvement measures for lighting system

Improvement measures for traction lifts and escalators


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Applicant would attain were the above energy initiatives were implemented.

Figure 14. Potential rating if improvement measures are adopted (sample)

Application Stage 4 - Preview Detailed Information by the Applicant and Submit to the HKGBC The BESTAA shall sign their declaration form and upload it. They can then send the completed assessment result (“Detailed Information”) back to the Applicant for review. It should be noted that the Applicant cannot amend the “Detailed Information.” After reviewing the information and declaration form, the applicant can choose to accept or reject the application received from the BESTAA by log into the account and click “Accept” or “Reject”. If the Applicant choose to reject the application from the BESTAA, the application will be passed back to BESTAA. The BESTAA and changed the detail information, upload the declaration form and pass to the Applicant again. If the Applicant choose to accept the Application from the BESTAA, the Applicant needs to submit the application to the HKGBC. The Applicant must submit the application within 180 calendar days starting from receiving the notification email of change of account status from temporary account to paid account.

The Account of the Applicant remains active for another 60 calendar days from the day of submission to the HKGBC for clarification, during which the Applicant can access the “What-If” Function. The 60 calendar days are not counted as part of the 180 calendar days for submission of application and the Applicant’s inputs during these 60 calendar days do not affect the certification and labelling result.


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Figure 15. Applicant can choose to accept or reject the application from the assessor

Application Stage 5 - Certification After the final assessment is submitted, the HKGBC will verify the detailed information and results. The Applicant will receive a result notification email indicating the assessment result within 90 calendar days after the submission of application. The Applicant then has 42 calendar days to login to the HK BESTCOM account and formally accept this result. Upon accepting the result, the Applicant will be informed by the HKGBC that their Energy Performance Certificate and Label will be issued to the Applicant within 21 calendar days. The Applicant can also reject the result if the decision is made to appeal. For details please refer to Section 3.6.

3.5 Two-Step Assessment The Two-Step Assessment aims to provide an opportunity to an Applicant who is not satisfied with the preliminary rating and willing to take immediate actions and achieve a better rating. The Applicant has the option of choosing an alternative BESTAA for the 2nd step of the Two-Step Assessment. The Applicant will be notified of their HK BESTCOM rating at the preliminary assessment stage after the completion of Application Stage 1-4 as described above. They can improve their building’s energy performance based on the recommendations from the BESTAA before proceeding to the final assessment to obtain a better final rating. Before starting the final assessment, the Applicant needs to update the basic information, including the valid Business Registration Number and alternative BESTAA number if necessary and latest electricity and utility bills. The final assessment should be completed and submitted within 36 months after the confirmation from the Applicant on proceeding with the Two-Step Assessment.


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After the final assessment of the “Two-Step Assessment” is submitted, the HKGBC will verify the detailed information and results. The Applicant will receive a result notification email indicating the assessment result for the second stage within 90 calendar days after the second submission of application. The Applicant then has 42 calendar days to login to their HK BESTCOM Account and formally accept this result. Upon accepting the result, the Applicant will be informed by the HKGBC that their Energy Performance Certificate and Label will be issued to the Applicant within 21 calendar days.

3.6 Appeal Application After the Applicant rejects the assessment result from the Applicant Account, the Applicant needs to submit an appeal against the decision of the result to the HKGBC by sending an email stating their Applicant ID, building information etc. and grounds for appeal within 30 calendar days after the result notification email is issued. The BESTAA should assist the Applicant through the appeal process and provide sufficient information to the HKGBC for making further considerations and decisions.

The Applicant needs to settle the payment according to the instructions given by the HKGBC through email. The fee of the appeal is given in Table 1 and Table 2. Once the payment of the appeal application is received, the Administrator will conduct further assessment for the appeal case. The assessment will be passed to the Appeal Board once finished. The Appeal Board of the Scheme will review all the submitted information and re-evaluate the application. The decision of the Appeal Board will be final and conclusive.

The HKGBC will notify the Applicant on the appeal result within 90 calendar days after the appeal payment is received. Energy Performance Certificate and Label will be issued according to the appeal result.

3.7 Withdrawal of Application Any Applicant that wishes to withdraw from the Scheme must notify the HKGBC in writing. However the application fee paid is non-refundable.

3.8 Liability Waiver and Disclosure of the Scheme

Please refer to Appendix B for details.


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4 ENGAGING BESTAA FOR THE APPLICATION

4.1 The Role of the BESTAA Under the Scheme, BESTAA are required to provide independent verification service for the Applicant on the energy bills, documents to substantiate the buildings’ energy usage, number and type of energy end-use equipment, self-assessed energy performance rating and energy improvement measures according to HK BESTCOM. The BESTAA shall prepare relevant mark-up, calculation and measurement report to fulfil the requirement of the application.

4.2 Qualification Requirements for BESTAA A qualified BESTAA should possess the qualification and meet the requirement as stated below:

• be a Registered Energy Assessor (REA) under the Building Energy Efficiency Ordinance (Cap. 610 of the Laws of Hong Kong); and

• be a qualified BEAM Pro (BEAM Professional); and • has completed the relevant training for the Scheme offered by the

HKGBC in relation to the Scheme; and • registered with the HKGBC;

The HKGBC Administrator will verify the genuineness of the qualification as claimed by the potential BESTAA.

The HKGBC Administrator will organise mandatory training courses related to the Scheme for BESTAA from time to time. The purpose of the training is to educate the BESTAA to be familiar with the Scheme’s requirements and procedures involved in conducting the Scheme application.

4.3 Engagement of BESTAA The HKGBC maintain a list of qualified BESTAA on the HK BESTCOM website. The Applicant needs to appoint a BESTAA to provide independent verification service for the application. The Applicant shall make his/her own negotiation or agreement with the BESTAA regarding the independent assessment, including verification fee. A fixed fee amount is not provided.


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For the Two-Step Assessment, the Applicant can choose to appoint an alternative BESTAA for the second step Assessment, as opposed to the BESTAA appointed for the first step Assessment.

The HKGBC shall accept no responsibility or liability whatsoever in relation to any business dealings between the Applicant and the BESTAA for any application to the Scheme.


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5 RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF APPLICANT AND USE OF ENERGY PERFORMANCE CERTIFICATES AND LABELS

5.1 Rights and Obligations The Applicant is entitled to the right to lodge complaints or make an appeal against the operation of the Scheme or the result decided by HKGBC.

The Applicant shall at all times,

• comply with the obligations and requirements as required;

• ensure the documents provided are true and accurate;

• allow HKGBC to publicise the list of successful and certified premises of the Scheme;

• use and display the Certificate and Label honestly and truthfully to any person concerned;

• endeavour to ensure that the Certificate and Label awarded is not used in a misleading manner; and

• maintain the energy performance of the premises.

The Applicant shall cooperate with the HKGBC and BESTAA and provide them with full support during on-site assessment(s) as required during the course of the application and to provide all necessary information.

In the event that the Applicant fails to meet any of the above obligations, the HKGBC may terminate the Certificate and Label and also the registration of the premises and request for the return of the Certificate and Label.

5.2 Use of Energy Performance Certificate and Label

The validity period of the Energy Performance Certificate and Label is five years. The Applicant is required to submit a renewal application if they wish to continue to use the Certification and Label.

The Energy Performance Certificate and Label awarded can be only used on the registered building and shall under no circumstance represent energy performance of other buildings owned by the Applicant.

The ownership and copyright of the Energy Performance Certificate and Label is held by the HKGBC. The HKGBC reserves the right to update the


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database and assessment tools regularly to closely monitor the trend of the market.

The Applicant may use the Energy Performance Certificate and Label for public and media purpose with approval from the HKGBC.

Without the approval of the HKGBC, using the Energy Performance Certificate and Label on publicity materials or advertisements, reprinting and displaying in building other than the registered address of the building and so on shall be considered as unauthorised use of the Energy Performance Certificate and Label which may lead to termination of registration validity.

Use of Label • The HKGBC as the registered proprietor of the Label and the owner of

the goodwill in the Label, grant the Applicant limited, non-transferrable, revocable permission to use the Label solely on the terms set forth below.

• The permission to use the Label will be valid for 5 years from the date of issuance to the successful Applicant unless revoked by the HKGBC. The Label shall only be used for the purposes and in the manner as described herein. The Label can be displayed in the awarded premises, on the name cards, company website and promotional materials, ranging from advertising materials to direct mail items, article, prints and electronic catalogues, websites, user manuals, booklets, signage, news releases and newsletters.

• Immediately after the permission to use the Label expires or is revoked by HKGBC due to violation of or non-compliance with the Scheme requirements, any use of the Label must be ceased. For example, amendments to any information of the Applicant, including but not limit to change of company name or address, major renovation or removal of office.

• The permission to use the Label are NOT transferable. • The Label user shall not make reference to the intent to submit an

application that the office premises may be certified in the future. For example, an Applicant shall not state “Approval by HKGBC for the HKGBC Benchmarking and Energy Saving Tool – Commercial Buildings (Office/Retail) is pending” or “Submission for the HKGBC Benchmarking and Energy Saving Tool – Commercial Buildings (Office/Retail) has been made”.

• Adaptation of the artwork of the Label is strictly prohibited. • The Label should always be used with the certification number. (Please

see below Figure 16 for reference.)


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Figure 16 HK BESTCOM Label with certification number

• No Label or aspect thereof shall be incorporated as part of the business name, business stationery, internet domain name, or brand name/ trademark for products/ product lines. This includes both the designs aspects and words aspects.

• The Labels have been registered under the Trade Marks Ordinance (Chapter 559 of the Laws of Hong Kong) and the Trade Marks Rules (Chapter 559A of the Laws of Hong Kong). In the event of any unauthorised use in the course of trade or business in Hong Kong in relation to the same or similar goods or services without the consent from the HKGBC, the user will be liable for an infringement of the Label and the HKGBC may take legal action against the user. The Label user shall indemnify the HKGBC against all liabilities, costs, expenses, damages and losses (including but not limited to any direct, indirect or consequential losses, loss of profit, loss of reputation, and all interest, penalties and legal costs (calculated on a full indemnity basis) and all other reasonable professional costs and expenses) suffered or incurred by the user arising out of or in connection with any breach by the user of the terms hereof and any misuse the user make of the Label.

Label Image Requirement The image of the Label on all materials should meet the following requirements: • The Label can be enlarged or reduced on proportion. • The Label must be legible and readily identifiable with 300 dpi

resolution. • Distortion is not allowed.

BESTCOM/2017/0001


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• The Label must be placed on white background and it should be used in full colour whenever possible.

• The Label should be placed with colours, size and position of optimal visibility.


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Consequences of Misuse of the Label • Any act such as addition and/ or omission of certain information about

the premises by the Label user, no matter with or without the intention of breaching the conditions stated herein, shall be considered as an act of misuse of the Label.

• The HKGBC shall have the right to revoke the permission to use the Label of the Label user with no compensation if there are evidences of misuse of the Label.

• The HKGBC shall have the right to claim from the Label user for any loss and costs incurred by the HKGBC as a result of the misuse of the Label including any costs given rise by legal proceedings, public notifications, etc.

• If the Label user refuses to follow the guidelines for the use of the Label after being warned by the HKGBC twice, they will be demanded to cease using the Label on any materials.

5.3 Termination of Use of Energy Performance Certificate and Label

HKGBC has the right to terminate the registration of the premise and use of the Label of the Applicant at its sole and absolute discretion with the approval of the Professional Review Panel of the Scheme for any of the following reasons:

The Applicant fails to prove the genuineness of the application data ; The Applicant is behaving in a dishonest or fraudulent manner which

jeopardizes or damages the reputation or interests of the Scheme. The Applicant fails to maintain the energy performance of the premises

Upon the notification of termination, the Applicant shall return the Certificate and Label to HKGBC within 2 weeks. In the event of relinquishment of certification, the Applicant shall immediately cease the use of any advertisement bearing the Certificate or Label. The premises which have had its Certificate and Label terminated may re-apply for certification 6 months after the termination. The Applicant must follow the application procedures like a first time application for re-application and pay for the application fee. However, HKGBC reserves the right to reject re-application if it sees fit to do so in order to protect the reputation or interests of the Scheme.


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Appendix A

Application Process Flowchart


A.1 Application Process for HK BESTCOM

Application Process for HK BESTCOM

Applicant to lodge appeal by written request within 30 Calendar Days

NO


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Appendix B

Liability Waiver and Disclaimer


B.1 Liability Waiver and Disclaimer This is a voluntary scheme to promote energy efficiency of commercial buildings. The Hong Kong Green Building Council Limited (HKGBC) shall not be liable to any participant for any loss or damage arising from the use of information, material, tools, certificate and label or any other matters in connection with the HKGBC Benchmarking and Energy Saving Tool – Commercial Buildings (Office/Retail) (the Scheme). The HKGBC and the Secretariat shall not be responsible for any responsibility or liability whatsoever in relation to - any negotiation or agreement between the Applicant and the BESTAA

for application to the Scheme; and - any consequence arising as a result of applying to the Scheme, use of

the Certificate and Label of the Scheme, cessation of joining the Scheme, or the publication or announcement of any premises.

This provision shall survive after termination or cessation of the use of the Certificate and Label. The material contained in the Scheme website has been prepared by the HKGBC, on the basis of the latest information available to it. The HKGBC believes, to the best of its knowledge, that all information given is reliable, but makes no representation, warranties or guarantee, whether express or implied, that the content on the Scheme website is accurate, complete or up-to-date. To the extent permitted by law, HKGBC excludes all conditions, warranties, representations or other terms which may apply to the Scheme website or any content on it, whether express or implied. The HKGBC shall bear no responsibility or liability for any loss and damage, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty, or otherwise, even if foreseeable, relating to or arising from any error or inaccuracy of such information. The HKGBC and the organisations and individuals shall not be responsible for any errors or omissions contained in the Scheme website, and hereby reserve the right to make changes without giving prior notice. The said parties take no responsibility in respect of any use of or reference to the Scheme website or the information contained in it, and are not liable in any event for any damages whatsoever arising out of or related to the Scheme website or the information contains therein. The content on the Scheme website is provided for general information


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only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which the user should rely. Users of the Scheme website should not take any of the information on the Scheme website as being any advice or recommendation, and should not rely on such information on the Scheme website for any purposes. HKGBC is the owner or the licensee of all intellectual property rights in the Scheme website, and any material published on it. Those works are protected by copyright laws and treaties around the world. All such rights are reserved. No user of the Scheme website may distribute, modify, transmit, or use the contents of the Scheme website in any manner for public or commercial purposes without obtaining prior written permission or a licence from the HKGBC. All materials and information in the Scheme website may be downloaded for non-commercial or personal use only. Under no circumstances should the use of the Scheme website be construed as granting a license or rights to use any of the HKGBC’s intellectual property rights displayed in the Scheme website, unless with the prior written permission from the HKGBC.


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Appendix C

Online Tool - Application Stages for the Scheme


C.1 Online Tool – Application Stages for the Scheme


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Appendix D

Detail Information Reference for HK BESTCOM


D.1 Detail Information Reference for HK BESTCOM

This section goes into further detail of the intent and usability of the HK BESTCOM. The section will go in order of the questions in the Scheme. The benchmarking tool issues two types of warnings: binding warnings, and non-binding warnings. Binding warnings will prevent the user from clicking submit and advancing to the HK BESTCOM Result. Non-binding warnings will not prevent the user from advancing to the result.

Before any input values, the building type needs to be confirmed by selecting from the following options. The available input will change according to the selection.

The following section will cover the inputs for Option 1 as it covers all the possible inputs, whereas only some of the questions in Option 1 are applicable to Option 2.

1. What is the Annual Total Energy Consumption of the building in the past 12 months [2]?

2 The submission of the application shall be completed no later than 6 months after the latest energy bill reference month


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The question comes with a slider to aid input. The slider is in MJ/annum. Energy can also be input in kWh/annum, and after inputting in one box, the Tool will automatically calculate the value in the other box.

An input below 6,000 MJ/annum will trigger a non-binding warning. The slider will only go up to 60,000,000 MJ/annum, but the user can input higher values in the input boxes up to 400,000,000 MJ/annum. The input shall be rounded to the nearest integer value. The mouse-over function is also enabled for the “Annual Total Energy Consumption” which gives a quick definition of the term.

2. What is the internal floor area (IFA) and gross floor area (GFA) of the building?

The question comes with two sliders to aid input, for Internal Floor Area (IFA) and Gross Floor Area (GFA). IFA (but not GFA) is used in the Tool’s calculations, but input for GFA is also asked so that the user does not accidentally input GFA for IFA. If GFA and IFA are equivalent, a non-binding warning will be issued. The mouse-over functions are also enabled for both the “Internal Floor Area (IFA)” and “Gross Floor Area (GFA)” which gives a quick definition of the terms.

3. What is the % area of total building entity served by CBSI with the following major usage:


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The user is to assign the entire internal floor area of the assessed building into the listed usage categories and calculate their % of the total IFA. Please note that binding warnings are issued if Option 2 is selected and the input for Office is below 40% if the decentralised office building (implying assessed building is not eligible for the Decentralised Office Buildings of HK BESTCOM scheme) and if the input total does not equal 100%. The mouse-over function is also enabled for the “% area of total building entity” which gives a quick definition of the terms.

4. What is the portion of the building entity being Common Area?

Common Area refers to the common area interpreted in the Buildings Energy Efficiency Ordinance. This section is shown below:

common area (公用地方), in relation to a prescribed building—

a. means any area of the building other than the parts that have been specified in an instrument registered in the Land Registry as being for the exclusive use, occupation or enjoyment of an owner; and

b. includes, unless so specified, car parks, entrance lobbies, lift lobbies, corridors, staircases, common toilets, common store rooms, plant rooms, switch rooms, pipe ducts, cable ducts, refuse rooms, material recovery chambers, covered podia, covered playgrounds, occupants’ clubhouses and building management offices;

The input shall be the total common area divided by the IFA. The BESTAA shall prepare a summary of common area calculation for submission. Binding warnings are issued for inputs of 0% and 100%. The mouse-over function is also enabled for the “Common Area” which gives a quick definition of the term.

5. What is the Biweekly Normal Operating Hours for Office Work?


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The question comes with a slider to aid input. The total operating hours per two weeks of the office portion of the building shall be inputted. A non-binding warning is given for input below 100 hours, and input is capped at 336 hours (24 hours operation). Only integer values are accepted. The mouse-over function is also enabled for the “Biweekly Normal Operating Hours” which gives a quick definition of the term.

6. What is the Biweekly Normal Operation Hours for Retail?

The question comes with a slider to aid input. The total operating hours per two weeks of the retail portion of the building entity shall be inputted. A non-binding warning is given for input below 100 hours, and input is capped at 336 hours (24 hours operation). Only integer values are accepted. The mouse-over function is also enabled for the “Biweekly Normal Operating Hours” which gives a quick definition of the term. This question will not be provided if Option 2 is selected.

7. What is the Major Type of Air-side System serving the AC of the office portion of the building?

This question asks the type of air-side system for the office portion of the building, because there is no further categorisation for the centralised retail portion. Depending on the type of central chiller plant (exclude condenser only) serves the building, either FCU or AHU (CAV/VAV) option shall be selected. The mouse-over function is also enabled for the “Major Type of Air-side System” which gives a quick definition of the terms. This question will not be provided if Option 2 is selected.

8. Does the building provide 24-hour air conditioning for the office portion?

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the office portion of the building


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If there is any portion of office area which under normal operation is conditioned for 24 hours/day, select “Yes”.

9. Is the major type of building facade curtain wall?

If the major type of the building facade is curtain wall, select “Yes”

10. Date of issue of occupation approval (dd/mm/yyyy)?

Enter the date of issue of occupation approval based on occupation permit.

11. Does the HVAC system use air-side heat recovery technology at office portion?

Select “Yes” if the office portion HVAC system uses air-side heat recovery technology.

12. Does the building adopt free cooling strategy at office portion?

Select “Yes” if provisions are made in the office portion HVAC system to allow for free cooling and if this strategy is adopted.

13. Does the building adopt natural ventilation at office portion?

Select “Yes” if the office portion adopts natural ventilation.

14. Annual Energy Consumption Breakdown


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A binding warning is issued if the input does not total 100%.

15. Lighting Installation Breakdown

Fill in area measurements for the different types of office, shopping and other areas provided as options. For each type of area, the user can input distinct operation hours, whether an occupancy sensor is adopted, and finally the total installed lighting power of that area.

16. Lift


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If the building does not have any lifts/escalators, the user can select “No” and the subsequent lift/escalator options will disappear. Here input for two types of lifts can be inputted, namely traction life and escalator. For the traction lift. The user shall select the motor drive system that best matches the majority of the building’s traction lifts and select whether regenerative drive is adopted. For the escalators, the user need to select whether service-on-demand control is provided for the current building, if “Yes”, the user can select from two options: “Automatic start/stop” and “Two-Speed”.

17. Monthly EUI of the past 12-month period (MJ/m2/month)

The user shall input EUI for the past twelve months, making sure to enter the EUI for the month as named above the box and not the last twelve months chronologically. For example, if the most recent energy bills used in the assessment are from April, the user shall input April’s EUI in the fourth box titled “Apr” and not the first box titled “Jan” or the twelfth box titled “Dec.”

18. Air-Conditioning


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If the assessed building is centrally-cooled, as previously indicated in question 6, the user shall input details into their chiller systems. The user shall choose between oil-free/non-oil-free, air/water-cooled and constant/variable speed drive to best represent the chillers used in normal operation. The user shall also select the type of chilled water supply. The chilled water supply options depend on the type of chiller drive selected. For constant speed drive, the options are “Constant Primary Flow” and “Constant Primary Flow/Variable Secondary Flow.” For variable speed drive, the options are “Constant Primary Flow/Variable Secondary Flow” and “Variable Primary Flow.” For the “Chiller COP”, the ranges will automatically change to 2.0-3.5 if “Air-cooled Chiller” is selected and change to 4.0-6.5 if the “Water-cooled Chiller” is selected. If a building as multiple chillers with different COP values, an average (capacity weighted) rated chiller COP should be used.

After clicking save, the BESTAA will be brought to the Assessment Result page (see figure below as reference).


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Commercial Buildings (Office/Retail)


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Appendix E

Certificate and Label of HK BESTCOM


E.1 Certificate Label and Format 1. The format of the Certificate of the HKGBC Benchmarking and

Energy Saving Tool – Commercial Buildings (Office Retail) (HK BESTCOM) is as below:


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2. The format of the Certificate of the HKGBC Benchmarking and Energy Saving Tool – Commercial Buildings (Office/Retail) Authorised Assessor (BESTAA) is as below:


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3. The format of the 5 classes of Energy Performance Label of the Scheme are as below:

Platinum

Gold

Silver

Bronze

Green


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