I’ve just come across a guide to sustainable construction, which I think will be really useful for anyone in our industry looking at how to future-proof their own, or their clients’ buildings.
It’s produced by global law firm, Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer and aims to provide a quick guide to sustainable building certifications.
As the law firm’s introduction states: “Sustainable building certifications are used to assess and recognise buildings which meet certain sustainability requirements or standards. Building certifications recognise companies and organisations who build and operate greener buildings, thereby encouraging and incentivising them to increase sustainability.”
They also note that “certifications vary in their approach and can be applied to the demolition, planning and design, construction, operation and renovation phases of a building.”
And that “certifications can also differ in the type of buildings they are applied to, with specific tools used for different building types.”
I would agree that it can be confusing keeping track of all these, so I applaud Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer for taking the time to produce this handy guide.
The goal is to have a single set of measurements for carbon that one standard can help to achieve
Rachel Lekman Channel Marketing Manager for Sustainability and Construction
What's in the guide?
The guide looks at the various certifications most frequently encountered on real estate projects, including NABERS UK, WELL, BREEAM and EPCs.
NABERS UK (The National Australian Built Environment Rating System UK) measures the actual use of energy in existing buildings. NABERS provides a star rating for performance to enable a better understanding of a building's actual performance.
WELL (The Well Building Standard) is recognised as the global standard for health and well-being in buildings. It measures the features of the built environment that impact on health and well-being. It applies the science of how physical and social environments affect human health, wellbeing, and performance.
BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) is the internationally recognised benchmark for measuring a building’s sustainability across the entire lifecycle of a building. It evaluates the procurement, design, construction and operation of a building against targets based on performance benchmarks.
EPCs (Energy Performance Certificates) which measures energy efficiency on a sliding scale (from A to G), to show how efficiently the building/premises is operating). It applies to private rented residential and non-domestic property.
One standard to bind them!
The guide also looks at the forthcoming UK Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard (UKNZCBS), which we have been a keen advocate for and have written extensively about here on The Hub.
The UKNZCBS is aiming to set a new benchmark for verifying buildings as net zero, aligning with the UK's 2050 climate targets.
It has been created by a partnership of industry experts from across the construction sector who have joined forces to develop the UK's first "Standard" for identifying and verifying buildings as net zero carbon. To date, over 350 professional volunteers have been providing data in a pilot scheme.
The Standard will affect organisations in the real estate world looking to fund, procure, design, construct or occupy a net zero carbon building. Its aim is to provide uniformity in claims of net zero buildings and drive the decarbonisation of the built environment to help achieve the UK's net zero carbon target by 2050.
There are already many existing sustainable building standards and schemes working towards the same net zero goals and a key aim of the Standard is to create alignment with these other industry standards and schemes, such as NABERS UK, by having a single set of measurement for carbon such that achieving one standard can help buildings to achieve another.
Rachel Lekman is Channel Marketing Manager for Sustainability and Construction
