ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

This year marks the start of a countdown to the introduction of the new Part L of the ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ Regulations. True, at this stage we don’t know exactly what form it will take, but the UK government must incorporate the European Directive on the Energy Performance of ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½s into national law.

Regular readers of BSj may well be fed up to the back teeth of hearing about the EPBD! However, we should remember that the majority of the construction and property industries seem blissfully ignorant of the implications of this legislation. They don’t seem to have any idea that as of January 2006, air conditioning systems and boilers are going to face regular checks on performance; or that their buildings will have to carry energy certificates. There are some exemptions of course, but there are very few construction professionals who won’t feel the massive effects of this market-changing policy.

One of the key factors for success will be whether the industry can pull together. We need manufacturers to invest in energy efficient products; designers to consider the whole building’s energy use and carbon emissions; installers and facilities staff to ensure that equipment will work as expected.

We only have 12 months to prepare a whole new way of thinking about buildings. BSj readers should be prepared to lead the way on answering the questions which will inevitably come from architects, developers and end-users.

A Carling, North Yorkshire