With industry-leading expertise, a wealth of experience on all types of commercial projects, the commercial compliance team at Melin is very well placed to support your SBEM & EPC requirements and demonstrate compliance with the latest Part L Building Regulations.
Melin can carry out SBEM assessments on all types and sizes of commercial building, our team are accredited in Level 3, 4 and 5, so however simple or complex your development project is, you can rest assured you will be in safe hands with our team.
What are SBEM Calculations?
SBEM is a calculation which measures the energy performance of a non-residential building. Its official title is ‘Simplified Building Energy Model’. This is a government approved methodology which is used to calculate the energy required to heat, cool, ventilate and light a non-residential building. They are required for any new build, extended, or refurbished property over 50m2.
It is defined as ‘simplified’ due to the background maths involved is pre-determined, which means the modelling can be completed more efficiently. Also ensuring it is feasible to assess the energy performance of similar buildings consistently against the building regulations.
SBEM calculations review and provide a clear assessment of the carbon emissions and energy performance of the property as well as ensuring compliance to achieve Building Regulations: Approved Document -Volume 2. AD-Volume 2 states that all new buildings must be designed and built to a standard such that the calculated Building CO2 Emission Rate (BER) is no worse than a defined Target CO2 Emission Rate (TER).
The SBEM model essentially measures three fundamental factors of assessing a buildings energy performance.
Measures the heat loss through the fabric of the building. This part of the assessment considers the amount of insulation and construction specified for the walls, roofs, floors and windows.
The SBEM considers the energy used to provide the occupants of the building with heating, hot water, ventilation and lighting.
Lastly, the calculation considers energy saved by using technologies such as solar PV panels, air/ground source heat pumps, solar thermal, wind turbines, these are all then accounted for within the overall assessment.
Does your development require an SBEM?
SBEM Calculations are a mandatory requirement for any heated, new commercial building exceeding 50m2 floor area. They are also required for large extensions and associated refurbishment of existing buildings and change of use, from one type of building class to another.
We are CIBSE (Chartered Institute of Building Services Engineers) accredited to produce SBEM and EPC assessments on all types of commercial buildings, and are accredited to offer Level 3, Level 4 and Level 5 assessments.
Complex Buildings
For more complex buildings, for example those with features such as ventilation with enhanced thermal coupling to the structure, automatic blind and vent controls, will require a Level 5 assessment. In this instance, it isnt appropriate to use SBEM as the calculation tool. In these cases our in house experienced commercial team would use Dynamic Simulation Modelling as this method requires a greater level of data input than SBEM and provides more accurate results.
Large Extensions
Under approved document L Volume 2, a large extension will qualify as a new building, this would be the case if the total useful floor area of the extension is both;
If your development applies to the above, then SBEM calculations must be submitted to building control.
When do you need to have SBEM Calculations carried out?
In short, as early as possible!
Completing the calculations during the design process can reduce the risk of any potential issues before the project design is finalised and construction begins. Construction should not begin until a compliant SBEM report has been generated and formally submitted to building control.
SBEM Calculations can be completed once a project is underway or even completed (more common then you may think), however we do strongly recommend having the calculations completed as soon as possible during the design process as changes in design (in the comfort of a warm office) are a lot less expensive then changes on site!
What happens if my SBEM Calculations don’t meet Building Regulation Standards?
Our mantra has always been 10% Calculation and 90% Solution, in these cases our team kick into solution mode!
If the project is at design stage, our commercial specialists will review the project and be able to make recommendations on how to achieve compliance, we tend to produce a host of compliant options that the project team can consider and cost review before making an informed decision. At design stage, these options could be insulation changes to the building fabric or amendments to heating or cooling efficiencies.
If the project is at as-built stage (complete), options for amendments to the building fabric tend to be very unrealistic based on the complexity and costs involved, therefore a non-compliant SBEM at this stage can be more difficult. However, our team thrive on this scenario and immediately get to work on exploring viable solutions, these could be reviewing air permeability, lighting efficacy, and renewable technologies as potential avenues to ensure compliance. And ‘touch wood’, in our 20 years experience we have a 100% success rate, so you can be sure, however problematic your predicament may be, Melin will support you through the process. Please see one of our relevant case studies here.
What if changes need to be made once construction begins?
Don’t worry, the SBEM is a working document, it is quite common for minor iterations to be required (or in some cases, big changes) once work begins on site. In order to ensure that any changes are still SBEM compliant, we advise getting in touch with our in house team before any design changes are implemented on-site, so we can re-run the calculations with the updated information to ensure it still meets the required Part L standards.
It’s very common for our dedicated commercial team to receive calls from project managers on site eagerly waiting to press the button on a site install, only to realise it hadn’t been re-run through SBEM, our team have then been known to re-run the calculations whilst the site team are listening to our ‘catchy’ hold music.
As Built SBEM & Commercial EPC
The as-built calculation is carried out once the project has been completed, the as built SBEM is also required in order to generate the Energy Performance certificate, both of which need to be submitted to Building Control to enable the project to be signed off.
Most projects will require an air tightness test on completion, we offer all types of commercial air tightness testing nationwide, please visit our site services page or contact us.
If any alterations have occurred during the course of construction and since the original SBEM was carried out, these will be incorporated into the As built SBEM Calculation, and once the as built SBEM is completed and has met compliance, the Energy Performance Certificate can be issued.
What information do we require at As Built Stage?
To make sure we can produce the final calculations accurately and quickly, we send out an SBEM Confirmation sheet for completion, this document enables the developer to input the as-built specification as installed.
Please see here to download the checklist.
We also require a full set of drawings annotated as ‘As Built’.
Why Choose Melin Consultants for your Commercial Compliance needs?
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