Following the publication of a report revealing a lack of understanding of how to respond to energy efficiency measures within the industry, government is preparing to revise the approach to older building retrofitting.
The report also revealed that the heat loss of traditional buildings performed much better than stated in standard model and assessment methods. The report also reveals that the available studies on traditional building energy performance, traditional material data, occupant behaviour in older buildings, indoor air quality and ventilation rates are not adequate. The report concluded that these inadequacies would make it impossible to predict the impact of retrofit programmes which in turn means that the opportunity to employ more efficient measures could be missed.
Neil May, project leader for Research by the Sustainable Traditional Buildings Alliance (STBA), claimed that if we are to radically improve the energy performance of six million traditional homes, we need a more informed, learning-based process that acknowledges the uncertainties and engages all parts of the supply chain.
The STBA and DECC are now developing an interactive guidance tool for the industry that incorporates all parts and participants in the process of retrofitting.
