Approved BREEAM Innovation Applications

The table below lists BREEAM Approved Innovation applications (‘Approved Innovations’) where permission has been given to publish the information.

In most cases, the aim shown has been copied from the application form. However, in some cases this has been edited for clarity or brevity. Comments in square brackets indicate BRE comment where necessary.

Approved innovations are listed so that assessors can check whether a potential innovation has been previously approved. An approved innovation can only be used once (to award an innovation credit) for the projects agreed through the innovation application.

The process for applying for an Approved Innovation is described in KBCN1398.

Approved Innovations

Date of decision	Scheme	Innovation title	Summary of innovation
15-Oct-24	INF	Method for fabrication and assembly of steel bridges	The innovation is based on using an automated and robotized laser beam (LBW) and laser-arc hybrid welding (LAHW), which are attractive joining methods of medium thickness plates in a single pass welding technique.
02-Aug-24	NC	E-slab system	A pre-fabricated low-carbon floor construction slab that integrates the benefits from multiple products into a single system. It’s exposed surface offers thermal mass benefits in controlling internal temperatures. It is modular and de-mountable, integrating electrical and ventilation services and connections that can be easily adjusted or disassembled by facilities management without construction equipment to meet changing layouts and to simplify refurbishments. It’s integration largely eliminates ducting and associated infrastructure, resulting in reduced floor to ceiling heights, simplified construction and reduced overall embodied carbon impact.
07-Jun-24	INF	Systematic pre-grouting for waterproofing of railway tunnel to omit inner lining	The proposed innovation is a method of pre-excavation grouting of tunnels in rock to achieve water proofing and avoid the need for a secondary concrete lining. The method reduces the volume of excavated rock as well as the resources used for the tunnel lining.
18-Dec-23	NC	Concrete made of 100% recycled aggregate	Concrete made of 100% recycled aggregate based on patented know-how. Full replacement of natural aggregate (NA) in concrete with recycled aggregate (RA) made of construction demolition waste (CDW).
18-Dec-23	NSO	Advanced leak detection system	The innovation aims to reduce the environmental impact and costs associated with water leakages by early and precise mitigation. The innovation is a comprehensive, integrated system for moisture monitoring in buildings. An algorithm is used to interpret input data from sensor nodes (and adjust for weather conditions, relative humidity, and residual moisture) to precisely detect leakages in the building fabric.
24-Oct-23	RFO	Using AirRated Design and Operation as a key part of building management in the project	Using AirRated D&O to inform the design, committing to using AirRated post-construction to check/validate the design, and committing to complete monthly AirScore assessments post-construction.
16-Aug-23	NSO	Dynamic Glass	Combination of electrochromism and foil insulation elements that are controlled by wireless control units, self-served from solar panels. This facade system provides heat protection in a lightweight format without reducing insulating ability.
24-Feb-23	RFO	Tuneable white lighting (dynamic lighting control based on site-specific spectral measurements)	A lighting system with the “intelligence” necessary to be able to recognise local sky/natural light conditions occurring at the project site and the ability to adjust the performance of each luminaire to address these conditions – including augmenting the impact, quality, and reach of natural light, reducing lighting energy use where possible, and producing a diverse, dynamic working environment with a strong focus on human needs and preferences.
18-Jan-23	RFO	Maximising the on-site reuse of structural steel sections	An innovative approach to maximise the amount of deconstructed steel that can be reused on-site (on a proposed building extension) by using ribbon cutting and a specifically developed computer optimisation program.
18-Jan-23	NC	Archaeological mitigation	The use of detailed three-dimensional modelling and a common BIM data environment to reduce the percentage loss of significant archaeology to less than 3% by area in a historic city centre site, including the effect of services. The outcomes were corroborated by an archaeologist through on-site inspections, a watching brief, and planned archaeological interventions.
15-Aug-22	NC	Concrete pile foundation impression tool	An innovative impression tool to create indentations within the shafts of bored concrete piles. The use of this tool significantly enhances shaft friction and loading capacity, reducing pile length and volume of concrete used, while minimising additional construction time.
11-Mar-22	RFO	Reconditioned lighting	Applying circular economy principles through the re-use of lighting from another fit-out by carefully stripping out of lighting and working with the manufacturer to renew the light fittings’ warranty.
21-Sep-21	NC	Building materials passport created via development of a parametric translation process.	To create a large scale, practical application of a whole building materials passport using existing BIM data. This data was not initially created with the end intention for use as a building materials passport, and a parametric translation script was developed to convert data into the correct format. The parametric translation script has the potential to allow building materials passports to be created for many other existing assets, and the learnings from the project can inform the future development and standardisation of materials passports.
20-May-21	NC	Mitigation of noise from rooftop play area on the teaching areas below in a school	A school has a rooftop play area and another multi-use games area. Both areas will incorporate enhanced construction features to mitigate noise sources on the teaching areas below each space. The impact performance of the rooftop play and multi-use games area significantly exceeds the impact performance requirements of BB93.
18-Feb-21	INF	Hydrogen fuel cell for off-grid construction site power	Demonstrate use of a 250 kW hydrogen-fuel-cell-powered electrical power unit to provide heat and power to temporary construction site welfare facilities. Reduce carbon emissions and avoid local air pollution from running a diesel powered generator.
01-Oct-20	NC	Collection of urine from toilets to produce fertiliser	With an innovative recycling method, valuable nutrients recovered from urine can be made into fertiliser. As well as conserving natural resources, this reduces water pollution. Urine will be collected from toilets and treated separately from the rest of wastewater within the asset. The urine is then converted into fertiliser in three steps: 1) stabilisation of urine, 2) concentration of urine, 3) removal of micro pollutants.
24-Mar-20	NC	Single-use plastic tracker	The innovation is to eliminate single-use plastics (SUPs) in the construction industry. The innovation focuses on SUPs packaging, during manufacturing, delivery, on site storage of the materials to be used at the project, as well as at SUPs usage on site for welfare purposes. The single-use plastics tracker will be used to help monitor and report the use of SUPs in the construction project in order to ultimately eliminate these as much as possible and use appropriate alternatives.
02-Mar-20	NSO	A blue-green roof system	This proposal offered geo-technical benefits for storm water attenuation and surface water run-off management, and ecological benefits for local biodiversity while managing unique engineering and ecological challenges in widely varying extreme weather conditions. The thorough testing and accurate reporting of results demonstrated offer value to the wider industry.
11-Feb-20	NC	A mechanically bonded, fully flexible, floor plate	The application relates to the use of mechanically bonded CLT floor plates. This offered flexibility to the building occupier to adjust the floor layout to suit their needs including meeting acoustic and loading requirements.
20-Jan-20	NC	Monitoring of all water discharge points in building	A pilot programme to install and test a new water management system (WMS) with IoT (Internet of Things) integration capable of monitoring and measuring all building water discharge points, both at a building and portfolio level. This system achieves a level of monitoring granularity exceeding any previously known capabilities with a range of benefits for operational water consumption and health & safety.
08-Jan-20	NC	Material defect early warning system	A very early detection system via patented hydrosensor cables linked to BMS, capable of detecting minute water ingress (water vapour). The system aims to improve building fabric resilience and reduce material waste and labour through preventing large scale remedial works resulting from late detection of damage and defects.
20-Nov-19	NC	Reflected glare assessment study	A reflected glare assessment and mitigation study carried out to evaluate the potential risk of reflected solar glare issues from glazed façade or area of metal cladding affecting neighbouring streets.
08-Nov-18	RFO	Intelligent Building Management System (iBMS)	To create a fully integrated digital platform for the operation and maintenance of the building, integrating the 3D BIM viewer, digital O&Ms, real time data monitoring and Computer-Aided-FM systems.
25-Oct-18	NC	Commitment Agreement process	To implement a robust ‘Commitment Agreement’ process, to target, manage and deliver a building that is verified as low energy using in operation.
16-Oct-18	RFO	3D printing	3D-print secure chutes for confidential paper bins, to solve workplace performance gap operational issues with a minimal environmental impact. This method of construction is quicker, cheaper and more resource efficient.
26-Sep-18	NC	Waste heat from cooling system used to heat domestic hot water in Mixed Use building.	Recover of waste heat rejected by the cooling system of the non domestic part of the building to heat domestic hot water for residential part of the building.
04-Sep-18	NC	Water positive building	A project designed to provide 100% of all sanitary and drinking water use from filtered rainwater captured on site. By capturing and storing more than the projected consumption levels, it is completely self-sufficient in terms of water use even in a severe drought scenario.
03-Sep-18	NC	Evaporative cooling system using recycled rainwater.	The aims of this innovation are threefold:- • Reduction of carbon emissions • Reduction of energy use • Reduction of potable water usage
06-Jun-18	NC	Rainwater recovery from stormwater	A significant reduction in municipal water consumption arising from construction through the use of water from a storm-water pumping station.
02-May-18	NC	EPD development at the point of construction product procurement	To create a mechanism for EPD development where one did not exist before, i.e. at the point of construction product procurement
20-Apr-18	NC	Enhanced ventilation with no increase in the main plant size.	Aimed to provide enhanced ventilation without increasing the size of the  main plant.
14-Mar-18	NC	Forest protection	To voluntarily designate a large area of land designated for development under local planning regulations as protected forest, and to voluntarily put in place legal enforcement and protection to maintain this. [This approved innovation sets an important legal precedent in the country of assessment and local context, and the credit was awarded on this basis].
09-Mar-18	RFO	Monitoring of internal elements at a building user level	To provide insights of temperature, humidity, air pressure, light level, and air quality at a building user granularity, promoting health and wellbeing of staff, HVAC and lighting system operational performance.
01-Feb-18	RFO	Construction site operatives cycle to work	To promote operatives working on the construction site to cycle to work, by providing necessary facilities and an incentive scheme, to promote healthy commutes and reduce transportation emissions.
31-Jan-18	RFO	Automated maintenance algorithm	Automated maintenance regimes that sense, diagnose and report faults before they become failures.
03-Nov-17	RFO	Location tracking of people within the building.	Location tracking of people within the building for building operation management and wayfinding for occupants, visitors and engineers.
11-Oct-17	NC	Use of recovered rainwater during the drilling and installation of a ground source heat pump system.	To significantly reduce potable water used in the drilling and installation of the ground source heat pump system by approximately 2.6 million litres (once borehole works are completed later this year).
13-Sep-17	RFO	Early appointment of the Facilities Management team	Exceptional early appointment of the facilities team. This enables the FM team to influence design, procurement decisions and the development of practical maintenance information.
31-Jul-17	NC	AIMS system within the BIM model	To establish the use of an Asset Information Management System (AIMS) which will include specific information relating to BREEAM credits for each maintainable item.
17-May-17	COM	Methodology to reduce Transport Carbon Emissions	To significantly reduce transport carbon emissions attributable to construction workers engaged on large developments, thus lessening current and future climate change effects.
11-May-17	INF-P	Community or commercial value from felled trees	To utilise felled timber at its highest value and quality, therefore providing community, economic and environmental benefits.
11-May-17	INF-P	Supply of surplus excavated materials to manufacturers	To ensure that surplus excavated materials are provided to manufacturers as a replacement for raw materials, therefore using them at their highest value in line with circular economy principles.
28-Feb-17	NC	New living hoarding concept	A one-year trial of a new ‘living hoarding’ concept with the aim of better understanding its behaviour and usage constraints on a live, dynamic construction site.
01-Feb-17	INF-P	Materials efficiency metric	To create a metric that contractors should use to demonstrate materials efficiency and reduction in the use of non-renewable virgin materials through the design development and construction process, compared to a baseline established at an early design stage.
18-Oct-16	NC	Light weight system based on wire rope	Increase material efficiency in order to minimise material use, waste and energy and emissions associated with the production process.
10-Oct-16	NC	Virtual room	To collect and address comments from the project’s stakeholders after they are invited into a virtual room where designs can be observed in augmented reality.
07-Jun-16	NC	Electrical Energy Storage facility	To facilitate the uptake of renewable energy sources, manage the supply and demand of the building and avoid/defer future network reinforcements to meet demand by incorporating energy storage.
16-Dec-15	NC	Demand based ventilation control	To reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions and improve indoor environmental quality by highly accurate sampling and analysis of air quality, and responsive targeted ventilation.
21-Jul-15	NC	Reduced Carbon lead source of heat power	To reduce the carbon footprint of the office building by integrating  wood fuel powered syngas CHP as the lead source of heat and power in the building.
14-May-15	NC	Case study on productivity	Quantifying the gains and costs of a truly sustainable  BREEAM office building on the long-term as best practice example for the client’s offices through out Europe.
29-Jan-15	NC	Occupancy Level Tracker	Track occupancy levels in the building through individual’s movements. Use this information to refine control of services, increasing building efficiency. Inform occupants through a 3D model showing patterns of use.
29-Jan-15	NC	Heat transfer experiment	Actively inform occupants and visitors about how the building works, particularly in relation to heat transfer. Compare actual performance with the dynamic simulation model and fine-tune according to the feedback.
16-Sep-14	NC	Breathing building	To provide natural (mixed mode) ventilation to increase occupancy health and wellbeing, through a ‘breathing building’ approach with increased fresh air rates and utilising adaptive comfort models.
16-Sep-14	NC	Bespoke integrated ceiling panels	To demonstrate reduction in the energy required for cooling by using a bespoke ceiling panel which includes a cooling component, lighting and acoustic absorption.
19-Jun-14	NC	Reduction of whole lifecycle impacts of air conditioning	To reduce the whole life cycle impacts of the air conditioning equipment through: – Reduced replacement of parts – Increased life expectancy – Reduced risk of refrigerant leaks – Improved energy efficiency
19-Jun-14	NC	Vacuum drainage	Development and specification of a vacuum drainage system (UK First – commercial office) in conjunction with recycled water, eliminating the need for mains water in the building for flushing purposes.
19-Jun-14	NC	Cooling tower water recycling	To demonstrate the use of recycled water for heat rejection at cooling towers to reduce the use of potable mains water.
24-Apr-14	NC	Sustainability submittals	To work with the supply chain to consider sustainability at tender stage by bringing to the attention of the contractors the minimum sustainability criteria for each individual construction package. Encourage further improvements to be offered by the contractors where possible.
07-Jun-13	NC	BIM for Performance Management	To explore the effectiveness of BIM for performance management of non-domestic buildings, using the assessed building as a case study.
07-Jun-13	NC	Impact of extreme climate change on passive design measures – thermal comfort	To assess the potential impact of extreme climate on passive design measures and how building management regimes can help adapt the building and its occupants for thermal comfort.
01-May-13	NC	Smarter Cooling	To significantly improve the robustness of engineering systems serving controlled environments such as constant temperature rooms. This has the potential to reduce material waste and energy waste.
03-Apr-13	NC	Zero Waste to Landfill	To achieve zero non-hazardous waste to landfill through careful planning and site management involving collaborative working with the entire project team, including designers, waste carrier, sub-contractors, manufacturers and supply chain engagement followed by intricate review.
17-Dec-12	NC	Building App	To educate students and visitors to the site on the performance of the building.
15-Oct-12	NC	Electric Car Scheme	To introduce an electric car scheme to the development in order to further reduce carbon emissions associated with the assessed development and the new head quarters.
05-Oct-12	NC	Climate Change Risk Analysis Tool	To provide information on the climatic risks that the building will face in the future, allow resources to be targeted most effectively to mitigate these climatic risks.
20-Jul-12	NC	Climate Change Adaptation Report	To undertake a Climate Change Adaptation report and implement its recommendations to future proof the development and its operations, as well as provide a case study for future adaptation against climate change.
25-Jul-11	NC	Recycled and secondary aggregates	To recognise and encourage the greater use of recycled and secondary aggregates in construction, thereby reducing the demand for virgin material.
28-Jan-11	NC	Control of waterborne bacteria	A water-efficient solution for the control and prevention of conditions which allow for the presence of Legionella and other waterborne bacteria.
28-Jan-11	NC	Provision of real time energy use display	To reduce energy consumption within every flat, to promote energy efficiency across the development and to educate occupants in the benefits of energy saving and renewable technology.
01-Dec-09	NC	Facilities for low-emitting and fuel-efficient vehicles	To reduce pollution and land development impacts from vehicle use by encouraging the use of Alternative Fuel Vehicles for short journeys.

13-Feb-2024 - Updated intro text and added link to KBCN1398. Moved key to bottom of page.