Energy and Sustainability Performance Analysis of the Bernard Weatherill House

Abstract

This report, prepared for Croydon Council’s Sustainable Development and Energy Team, evaluated the energy and sustainability performance of Bernard Weatherill House. The team analysed the building’s design specifications, in-use energy consumption, Building Management System, and occupant satisfaction. These led to the creation of an Energy Management Software Provider Portfolio and visual tools that will increase energy use awareness and optimize energy management processes. Finally, a complete evaluation for fixing the building management system and recommendations to improve the overall performance of the building were prepared for the Council.

Project Introduction

The London Borough of Croydon is promoting sustainable development through the Croydon Council Urban Regeneration Vehicle (CCURV), which had the council’s new headquarters, Bernard Weatherill House (BWH), as their first project.

Like all other public buildings in the UK, BWH must be evaluated annually. In September 2014, a third party will conduct a performance review of BWH to publicly rank the building. The Council proposed a midyear analysis of the building energy consumption to have an initial evaluation of its performance. Since the building was constructed so recently, there was no data from the past against which to compare current building performance. Data provided by the Trend system, which is the Building Management System (BMS), and utility bills were the only resources available to do the evaluation. Energy efficient buildings are designed with multiple environmental features to reduce their energy consumption and carbon emissions relative to the minimum targets set by the Building Regulations. As a part of efficient designs, a BMS is installed in buildings to monitor and control the energy systems. A BMS is very important for the energy performance evaluation of a building because it provides continuously recorded values of energy consumption in specific areas of a building. This project analysed and evaluated data obtained from BWH’s BMS as well as the design Energy Strategy Statement to assess whether a performance gap existed between actual in-use energy consumption and predicted energy consumption values. Previous evaluations had not included the comfort level and liveability of the building in their analyses. Our project considered these factors in the evaluation of the building performance gap along with other qualitative aspects of this important public building. These social aspects were crucial for the Croydon Council to promote awareness of sustainable practices because they have a direct effect on the reduction of energy usage and other resource consumption.

Six major objectives guided our project to assist the Sustainable Development and Energy Team of the London Borough of Croydon to evaluate the energy and sustainability performance of BWH. First, the team analyzed the design specifications of BWH and obtained the predicted energy consumption values. Second, the team collected actual in-use energy consumption data for the first six months of BWH occupancy and identified significant problems with the building’s BMS. Third, the team identified and analyzed the performance gap between the predicted energy consumption of BWH and its actual energy usage. Fourth, the team inquired about occupant satisfaction and awareness of the building’s environmental features with an occupant survey. Fifth, the team created visual tools to communicate BWH energy consumption to the BWH occupants. Sixth, the team created an energy management software provider portfolio that will help the Council decide which company to use in the future. Finally, the team communicated this performance evaluation to the Sustainable Development and Energy Team of the London Borough of Croydon and provided recommendations to improve the energy efficiency of BWH.

Find our final report here.