Category: Blog

The Syntegra Group Blog Page.
Syntegra views on industry news

BIM costs – Specialists warn government over BIM costs

Building information modelling (BIM) is a new way of approaching the design and documentation of building projects. Building : the entire life-cycle of the building is considered (design/build/operations) Information : BIM data can be used to illustrate the building life cycle, from cradle to cradle Modelling : defining and simulating the building, its delivery, and […]

ISO 50001- details, benefits and relevance

Managing organisation energy consumption can result in decreasing energy costs, comply with environmental legislation, and improve your organisation’s reputation and image. ISO 50001 is an International Standard that lays out the latest best practice in energy management. Certification demonstrates that your energy management system meets the requirements of the standard. This gives your customers and […]

ISO 14001- what is involves and the benefits

ISO 14001 is an internationally accepted standard that stipulates how one can go about putting an effective Environmental Management System (EMS) in place. The standard is designed to achieve a balance between maintaining profitability of an organisation whilst minimizing environmental impact. ISO 14001 exists to allow organisations to determine those operations that have an adverse […]

Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) Tariff Proposals Announced- Act now!

Proposals for the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) have today been published by the Department for Energy & Climate Change (DECC). Key proposals within the announcement are as follows: Indicative tariff ranges for air source heat pumps 6.9 – 11.5p/kWh Indicative tariff ranges for ground source heat pumps 12.5 – 17.3p/kWh Homeowners will receive payments over […]

Simplified Building Energy Model (SBEM) Calculations- Explained and Examined

SBEM is developed by the Building Research Establishment (BRE) as a computer program to analyse building energy consumption of buildings other than dwellings, used in support of the National Calculation Methodology (NCM) and the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD). SBEM applies to all commercial buildings, i.e. industrial warehouses, school, hotels, pubs, sports halls to […]

Reducing Heat loss- equates to lower energy bills

The most cost effective measures your organisation can implement to reduce your energy bills are to reduce heat loss caused by the building fabric itself. To achieve a reduction in heat loss, the first important step is to add the insulation to roofs, walls and floors. The majority of existing properties have insufficient amount of […]

Energy Utilities Procurement in an Unpredictable Energy Market

The very unpredictable energy market in which we currently purchase utilities coupled with the exponential increase in energy costs has forced many organisations to seek out an improved approach to energy procurement. Energy procurement service will assess an organisations energy needs and compile a strategy that produces the optimal results in terms of cost savings, […]

The Future of Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP) Calculations

The Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP) is a method for evaluating and comparing the energy performance of dwellings in the UK. They provide a standardised method to underpin the UK’s environmental policies relating to energy performance in dwellings. Based on predefined comfort and occupancy conditions, SAPs look at both the energy consumed by a dwelling and […]

Worries over the borrowing power of the Green Investment Bank

The Green Investment Bank (GIB), a government scheme to attract private involvement and investment in environmental preservation and improvement, may be at risk due to government’s inability to control state borrowing. Although the GIB was set up to fund green schemes such as the Green Deal and sustainable infrastructure projects, it cannot borrow money from […]

Green-Deal uptake could be cut by 2.2 million homes due to the PM’s intervention

The DECC’s Green Deal, intended to reduce carbon emissions by allowing homeowners to pay for energy efficiency improvements through savings on bills, may be under threat. According to official leaked documents, David Cameron has intervened to block proposed changes to Part L of the Building Regulations. This could prevent 2.2 million homes from partaking in […]

DECC plans harsher retrofit targets for energy companies

Due to performance issues energy efficiency ratings for building products to be downgraded. Energy companies will need to undertake up to 35% more energy efficiency work in order to meet targets set under the Energy Company Obligation scheme, under proposals set out by the government earlier this week. The Department of Energy and Climate Change […]

Solar legal claim could rise above £100m

According to sources, the legal action against the government from solar firms claiming lost earnings caused by illegal changes to the solar electricity feed-in tariff could exceed £100m mark. Solar firms claim they lost millions of pounds worth of business after the government announced in October 2011 that it would cut the feed-in tariff (FIT) […]

Passivhaus Design Services

Developed in Germany in the 1990s, Passivhaus is a quality assured standard and methodology for low energy building, which can help create buildings which use around 90% less energy than standard UK buildings. Based on well researched and proven building physics, Passivhaus is based on the principle that reducing heating loss to a minimum is […]

Energy Statements- sustainable construction applications

An Energy Statement shows how developments like yours can use renewable technology to lessen the site’s environmental impact. With many planning departments now requiring energy statements alongside SAPs or SBEMs for planning applications; we at Syntegra Consulting offer expert advice pertaining to your Energy Statements. Local Planning Authorities are increasingly requiring an energy statement to […]

Part G water calculations

Part G came into force October 2010, and all new homes and conversions are now required to meet new water efficiency targets. This means that Building Control will now be asking for calculations to show that no more than 125 litres of potable water per person, per day are used in all new houses and […]

Thermographic surveys: Syntegra Consulting Launches new Testing and Compliance service

Building envelope leaks, poor or inadequate insulation, moisture and substandard work are costly to commercial and residential building owners- a Thermographic survey can quickly help you identify where energy efficiency can be improved. Depending on our client’s requirements, surveys can range from an external overview of each elevation of the building under review, through to […]

Air Tightness Testing: Syntegra Consulting Launches new Testing and Compliance service

Air Tightness is the key feature of any energy efficient building. It reduces wasted heat and allows the buildings atmosphere to be controlled with mechanical ventilation heat recovery units creating a healthier environment. Air-tightness testing is undertaken to determine a building’s air-permeability rating. Air tightness testing is an integral part of Part L of The […]