Benchmarking Modelled and Operational Energy Performance in Office Buildings

Abstract

In 2008, the European Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) facilitated the introduction of two mandatory energy assessment methods in the UK. Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) reveal the modelled energy performance of buildings when they are constructed, sold or let based on their intrinsic energy attributes, whereas Display Energy Certificates (DECs) reveal operational energy performance in a subset of buildings that is operated by the public sector, based on annual energy consumption data.EPCs were conceived as a marketing mechanism for property market participants and they have been used in studies that have sought to investigate the links between energy performance and financial performance of buildings. Past studies have investigated the relationship between modelled and operational energy performance measurement in buildings and have found mismatches between both. This study will investigate the link between the modelled and actual energy performance in office buildings that are occupied by the public sector. The study uses detailed EPC and DEC data from the Department for Communities and Local Government. A comprehensive benchmarking analysis of these ratings establishes the extent to which both align and differ across the same units. The EPC and DEC data is also matched to data on building attributes from CoStar UK to investigate the relationship between energy performance and building features such as age and building quality, which have been commonly used as control variables in past hedonic pricing studies. This study will also look at the magnitude of observed changes in operational energy performance over time, to investigate whether energy performance assessment leads to energy performance improvement.These findings will provide further insights into the effects and impacts of the introduction of energy certification for buildings. The further aim of this study is to develop a building typology based on commonly shared building and energy performance attributes.