Periodic Reporting for period 3 - EPC RECAST (Energy Performance Certificate Recast)
Berichtszeitraum: 2023-03-01 bis 2024-06-30
Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) represent a relevant instrument supposed to be strongly structuring for the assessment of buildings energy performance, decision support for energy retrofit projects, articulation of financing instruments, benchmark of building assets and market value recognition. However, their potential remains largely underexploited because of several challenges:
• Improving their reliability – results variance depending on the assessor, input data and calculation tools, lack of understanding between predicted and actual energy performance – represents a crucial issue to unlock confidence, decision support and financing.
• To engage end-users towards deep renovation, the certification is to structure clear, user-friendly information about the building asset and tangible pathways to ambitious targets with respect to building overall quality and energy performance improvement.
• The design for the overall process and certification outputs must be more owner and occupant centric and allow European benchmark and public policies analysis.
• All EU countries have established independent EP certification systems with independent mechanisms of control. At EU scale, many different EPC schemes co-exist. They are based on very different principles and assessment methodologies, rendering harmonization and comparability complex.
To tackle these challenges, EPC RECAST set a structured process and toolbox supporting the implementation and validation of a new generation of EP Assessment and Certification for residential buildings, for which retrofit is a challenging and pressing issue. By improving the usability, reliability and comparability of EPCs, and linking them to renovation roadmaps and digital logbooks, EPC RECAST contributes to unprecedented user awareness of building efficiency.
• Improving their reliability – results variance depending on the assessor, input data and calculation tools, lack of understanding between predicted and actual energy performance – represents a crucial issue to unlock confidence, decision support and financing.
• To engage end-users towards deep renovation, the certification is to structure clear, user-friendly information about the building asset and tangible pathways to ambitious targets with respect to building overall quality and energy performance improvement.
• The design for the overall process and certification outputs must be more owner and occupant centric and allow European benchmark and public policies analysis.
• All EU countries have established independent EP certification systems with independent mechanisms of control. At EU scale, many different EPC schemes co-exist. They are based on very different principles and assessment methodologies, rendering harmonization and comparability complex.
To tackle these challenges, EPC RECAST set a structured process and toolbox supporting the implementation and validation of a new generation of EP Assessment and Certification for residential buildings, for which retrofit is a challenging and pressing issue. By improving the usability, reliability and comparability of EPCs, and linking them to renovation roadmaps and digital logbooks, EPC RECAST contributes to unprecedented user awareness of building efficiency.
Development of the protocol and toolbox supporting the implementation of a new generation of EP Assessment and Certification for residential buildings (WP1 and WP2):
1) The BIMEO’s tool, formerly ART2BUILD tool, implemented a procedure to generate the EPC RECAST XML file (common data model) from the dwelling geometrical scanning app with the addition of questionnaires
2) The printing app which can automatically generate readable PDF files from XML files has been finalized. Reports were printed for German and Italian pilots
3) The calibration toolkit was deployed, tested and adjusted on Spanish pilots
4) Next-generation EPC template in connexion with the EPBD revision was finalized and translated in all languages of pilot countries
5) The Operational Rating tool using the measurement-based approach with metering data was adapted to the EPC RECAST and tested on Slovak and Italian pilots
6) The simulation model based on the Cometh tool was implemented, validated in pilots and debugged
7) The Renovation Roadmap interface and related tool were finalized, tested and validated in French pilots
8) The KROQI platform and digital logbook tool was implemented and used in most of the pilot projects as a container platform and a dedicated service was developed for the EPC RECAST process
9) The online EPC RECAST interface for EP assessment (link between input data collection and dynamic energy simulation with Cometh engine) was finalized as a webservice and used on most pilot projects
Validation of the protocol and toolbox on pilot sites (WP3) :
1) All the pilot sites (55 pilot sites consisting of 3 multi-family buildings as a whole, 40 apartments and 12 single-family houses spread over the 6 participating countries) have been recruited in time to allow to perform the testing activities by the end of the project.
2) Data from all the monitored pilots have been collected and analysed following common guidelines and protocol to compare the measured energy consumption with the calculated one and to analyse the influence of user behaviour on energy consumption.
3) The full testing methodology has been applied to all the recruited pilots, from the on-site visit to the issuing of the current/valid EPC and the next-generation EPC, applying a selection of the Evaluation Strategies and of the TCs based on each pilot’s characteristics.
4) The Evaluation Strategy at the basis of the Impact Assessment has been used to analyse the data collected via two types of online questionnaires (one for professional assessors and one for pilot owners) involved in all the pilots in the 6 EU MSs. Trends have been derived and the analysis further contributed to consolidate the EPC RECAST Protocol, as well as providing recommendations at technical and policy level.
Exploitation and Dissemination activities (WP4 to WP6):
1) 5 Key Exploitation Results (KERs) with the highest TRL have been identified: BIMEO geometrical scan, EPC RECAST calibration toolbox, Dynamic energy modelling tool for EPC use, Renovation roadmap tool, Printing app for quality checks
2) A proposal for a preliminary project exploitation strategy of the overall EPC RECAST Toolbox has been drafted
3) EPC RECAST has set up a Policy Advisory Board (PAB) and a Stakeholder Mirror Group (SMG) with experts from key decision-making public and local authorities and industrial stakeholders from European associations. 3 plenary workshops and bilateral meetings have been organized to identify proposals and criticism to the EPC RECAST methodology under development.
4) Project specific policy recommendations and experts’ opinions that offer a concrete suggestion on how to evolve to and implement the next generation of EPC products and services has been drafted
5) Dissemination and communication activities have been organized continuously, including participations & organisations to/of events and project-related updates on social media.
6) EPC RECAST has proactively managed activities in the network of EPC sister projects to strengthen their outreach towards EU stakeholders and public authorities, identify synergies and redundancies.
1) The BIMEO’s tool, formerly ART2BUILD tool, implemented a procedure to generate the EPC RECAST XML file (common data model) from the dwelling geometrical scanning app with the addition of questionnaires
2) The printing app which can automatically generate readable PDF files from XML files has been finalized. Reports were printed for German and Italian pilots
3) The calibration toolkit was deployed, tested and adjusted on Spanish pilots
4) Next-generation EPC template in connexion with the EPBD revision was finalized and translated in all languages of pilot countries
5) The Operational Rating tool using the measurement-based approach with metering data was adapted to the EPC RECAST and tested on Slovak and Italian pilots
6) The simulation model based on the Cometh tool was implemented, validated in pilots and debugged
7) The Renovation Roadmap interface and related tool were finalized, tested and validated in French pilots
8) The KROQI platform and digital logbook tool was implemented and used in most of the pilot projects as a container platform and a dedicated service was developed for the EPC RECAST process
9) The online EPC RECAST interface for EP assessment (link between input data collection and dynamic energy simulation with Cometh engine) was finalized as a webservice and used on most pilot projects
Validation of the protocol and toolbox on pilot sites (WP3) :
1) All the pilot sites (55 pilot sites consisting of 3 multi-family buildings as a whole, 40 apartments and 12 single-family houses spread over the 6 participating countries) have been recruited in time to allow to perform the testing activities by the end of the project.
2) Data from all the monitored pilots have been collected and analysed following common guidelines and protocol to compare the measured energy consumption with the calculated one and to analyse the influence of user behaviour on energy consumption.
3) The full testing methodology has been applied to all the recruited pilots, from the on-site visit to the issuing of the current/valid EPC and the next-generation EPC, applying a selection of the Evaluation Strategies and of the TCs based on each pilot’s characteristics.
4) The Evaluation Strategy at the basis of the Impact Assessment has been used to analyse the data collected via two types of online questionnaires (one for professional assessors and one for pilot owners) involved in all the pilots in the 6 EU MSs. Trends have been derived and the analysis further contributed to consolidate the EPC RECAST Protocol, as well as providing recommendations at technical and policy level.
Exploitation and Dissemination activities (WP4 to WP6):
1) 5 Key Exploitation Results (KERs) with the highest TRL have been identified: BIMEO geometrical scan, EPC RECAST calibration toolbox, Dynamic energy modelling tool for EPC use, Renovation roadmap tool, Printing app for quality checks
2) A proposal for a preliminary project exploitation strategy of the overall EPC RECAST Toolbox has been drafted
3) EPC RECAST has set up a Policy Advisory Board (PAB) and a Stakeholder Mirror Group (SMG) with experts from key decision-making public and local authorities and industrial stakeholders from European associations. 3 plenary workshops and bilateral meetings have been organized to identify proposals and criticism to the EPC RECAST methodology under development.
4) Project specific policy recommendations and experts’ opinions that offer a concrete suggestion on how to evolve to and implement the next generation of EPC products and services has been drafted
5) Dissemination and communication activities have been organized continuously, including participations & organisations to/of events and project-related updates on social media.
6) EPC RECAST has proactively managed activities in the network of EPC sister projects to strengthen their outreach towards EU stakeholders and public authorities, identify synergies and redundancies.
EPC RECAST is setting up an integrated assessment and certification procedure for EPCs: it is highly modular, with a set of digital tools interfaced with a centralized data model of the building. EPC RECAST is implementing and experimenting potential future changes in tools and work practices driven by the revised EPBD, preceding evolutions in national regulations and supporting the use of CEN standards (M/480) for EP assessment.
Based on outcomes of the demonstration activities conducted in 6 EU countries and from the conclusions of the co-creation workshops and activities conducted with the PAB and SMG, policy recommendations have been issued:
1) Need for a EU-level standard ontology based on CEN standard to facilitate data exchange between building energy efficiency tools.
2) Standardized and well-documented data models must be developed to facilitate interoperability between software providers of tools for data collection and energy simulation.
3) Because digital implementation takes time, they cannot be a market for EPC dynamic simulations without accreditation of simulation cores by public authorities.
4) Even if the process is automated, the assessor should have the final decision on input parameters of the standard energy model.
5) Renovation roadmap tools could be provided to owners to facilitate their interaction with professionals and understanding of renovation scenarios.
Based on outcomes of the demonstration activities conducted in 6 EU countries and from the conclusions of the co-creation workshops and activities conducted with the PAB and SMG, policy recommendations have been issued:
1) Need for a EU-level standard ontology based on CEN standard to facilitate data exchange between building energy efficiency tools.
2) Standardized and well-documented data models must be developed to facilitate interoperability between software providers of tools for data collection and energy simulation.
3) Because digital implementation takes time, they cannot be a market for EPC dynamic simulations without accreditation of simulation cores by public authorities.
4) Even if the process is automated, the assessor should have the final decision on input parameters of the standard energy model.
5) Renovation roadmap tools could be provided to owners to facilitate their interaction with professionals and understanding of renovation scenarios.