Ene 01 – Reduction of energy use and carbon emissions

Accredited energy assessors – directories - KBCN1465

The directory of accredited energy assessors has moved. For England, Wales and Northern Ireland, accredited energy assessors can be found here: https://getting-new-energy-certificate.digital.communities.gov.uk/ For Scotland, accredited energy assessors can be found here: https://www.scottishepcregister.org.uk This will be updated in future manual re-issues.

24 Aug 2022 - Applicability to UKNC V6 confirmed

Calculating EPR where multiple EPCs are required - KBCN0216

Where more than one BRUKL/EPC is produced for a development, which is registered as a single assessment, an area-weighted average should be used to calculate the number of credits to be awarded. This does not apply where the 'similar buildings' approach is used. The BRUKL.inp. files should be entered into the S&R tool (or for UK NC2011, uploaded to the Compliance Checker) and the three EPRs produced by the compliance checker, which must then be area-weighted to produce an average EPR for each metric. When applying this method, please include your area-weighting calculations and outputs as supporting evidence.

06/07/2023 - Applicability to UK RFO 2014 removed, as this methodology does not apply. For RFO 2014, a single, whole building EPC must be generated.
31/10/2018 wording clarified to apply to all relevant schemes.

Compliance Checker - KBCN00023

The UK NC 2014 Compliance Checker is publicly available via the BREEAM Projects website. However, the use of this compliance checker for UK NC 2014 is not required in order to assess the issue and award credits. The figures required for the Scoring and Reporting tool can be taken directly from the BRUKL output. The function of the UK NC 2011 compliance checker was to apply translators to the energy consumption metric to allow this to be assessed in terms of primary energy. The purpose of the UK NC 2014 Compliance Checker will be to allow BREEAM assessors and other members of the design team such as energy specialists, to review the performance of servicing strategies against BREEAM targets without using the BREEAM Scoring and Reporting Tool. The compliance checkers for BREEAM UK NC2011 and UK NC2014 can be found on BREEAM Projects by following this link; NC2011/2014 Compliance Checker

02 08 2022 - Link updated
26 04 2019 - Link to compliance checkers added and applied to UK NC2011

Definition of Accredited Energy Assessor - KBCN0706

BREEAM recognise that CIBSE Low Carbon Design and Simulation consultants are qualified to confirm compliance with Part L Building Regulations and are therefore qualified to produce BRUKL reports demonstrating compliance with Ene 01.

Technical manual to be updated accordingly in next re-issue.

Ene 01 Baseline- BREEAM UK NC 2014 Vs 2011 - KBCN0489

The methodology for assessing energy within Ene 01 is unchanged, however the means of defining the baseline for assessing the performance of a new building in each UK territory has changed. In the 2011 version the England and Wales building regulation for energy (Part L 2010) was used to calibrate the Ene 01 translators in the UK scheme, and therefore all buildings assessed in the UK used the same baseline, regardless of location. In the BREEAM UK NC 2014 version, the energy related building regulation local to each UK territory is used to set respective baselines for the Ene 01 issue. BREEAM Guidance Note 12 provides a more in-depth explanation of the Ene 01 methodology.

Energy consumption and carbon emissions of untreated spaces - KBCN00049

Where the assessment contains a mix of treated and untreated spaces, untreated spaces can be excluded and the performance based on the treated spaces only. Where the entire assessment is untreated, the whole of the structure(s) must be assessed on the basis that this issue is critical for certification. BREEAM is primarily designed to assess permanent, treated and occupied structures. Untreated structures are unlikely to gain many credits when being assessed.

24/08/2022 - Applicability to UKNC V6 confirmed

Energy modelling not required for Building Regulations compliance - KBCN0487

For the purposes of demonstrating BREEAM compliance, it is still necessary to undertake energy modelling to generate the required performance data.

24/08/2022 Applicability to UKNC V6 confirmed

Energy performance assessment for part of a whole building - KBCN0596

If the assessment is only covering part of a whole building, the energy performance assessment must be representative of the part of the building being assessed. Simply taking the energy performance assessment of the whole building would not therefore comply, especially if the non-assessed parts of the building were of a different use. A separate energy assessment of the part of the building is likely to be required. The energy performance assessment must be representative of the parts of the building being assessed. This also applies to the predicted energy performance and all energy modelling for the prediction of operation energy consumption.

24/08/2022 - Applicability to UKNC V6 confirmed
Amended 01/09/2020 to cover UKNC2018 - Prediction of operational energy consumption

GN12 Ene 01 – Guidance on the calculation methodology - KBCN0625

The purpose of this guidance note is to describe the calculation methodology used for assessment of the Ene01 Issue. View full Guidance Note (licensed assessors only) View all Guidance Notes (licensed assessors only)

LZC technologies – energy centre or other LZCs connected at a later stage - KBCN0267

If a project specifies LZCs that have been proposed in the feasibility report which reduce emissions, and/or will be connected to a site-wide energy centre operational at a later stage of the phased development, after the Post Construction Stage review has been submitted, the Energy and Pollution issues can be assessed as follows: In a phased development where the primary heating system will be upgraded at a later stage than the building being assessed, a commitment to install the new heating source must be made in the General Contract Specification (as per the BREEAM requirements). BREEAM does not specify a particular time for phasing as it is difficult to set parameters, however as a rule building users should have to wait the least time possible before they can use the upgraded heating source. For the quality audit, two Energy model outputs/EPCs must be produced at the final stage - one with the actual interim system installed for building control, and one for the BREEAM assessment which can include the predicted energy from the proposed energy centre. Additionally, the legally binding general contract specification for the new heating source must be submitted with details of the timescales proposed for the completion of the second phase of work. Where this approach is to be followed BREEAM must be consulted in each case to ensure that the arrangements are sufficiently robust to award the credits. BREEAM seeks to recognise the environmental impacts of a building's energy use throughout its life, therefore temporary arrangements can be accommodated, provided there is robust evidence on future connection to the permanent systems.

24/08/2022 - Applicability to UKNC V6 confirmed

On-site LZC – whole site shared connection - KBCN1424

To be recognised in BREEAM, the on-site Low and Zero Carbon (LZC) technology must have a direct physical connection to the assessed asset. OR Where the LZC technology is;

Located on the same site,
Is owned and managed by the same organization as the assessed building, and
Where it is impractical to physically connect the assessed building to the system,

It is acceptable to allocate the renewable energy generated proportionally as a calculation of the asset's predicted energy consumption compared to the total energy consumption of the whole site. To allocate renewable electricity by proportional consumption:

Obtain the total annual renewable electricity generated on-site.
Exclude all renewable electricity which has been exported to the grid.
Determine the respective electricity consumption of all assets on the whole site (predicted for new builds and measured for existing assets).

Where consumption data is missing, renewable electricity must not be allocated to the assessed asset. In this case, it is assumed that all electricity consumed is sourced from the grid.

17-Jan-2024 - Applicability BIU V6 Ene 13 removed, as this approach is not applicable to assessing the area of PV fitted.
21-Dec-2022 - Applicability to In-Use V6 confirmed.
24-Aug-2022 - Applicability to UKNC V6 confirmed.

Parts of the building not subject to national thermal regulations - KBCN0534

Where you have parts of the assessed building which are not subject to national thermal regulations then these should be omitted from the EPR calculation.

24/08/2022 - Applicability to UKNC V6 confirmed

Shell only – Installation of building services - KBCN00078

Content removed. Please refer to KBCN1488 for more comprehensive guidance.

Shell only – retail glazing not within scope - KBCN0937

Where a retail building envelope is not complete and glazing will be provided by the future tenant/(s), there are two options available: A 'Green fit-out agreement' (see Definition under this Issue in the technical manual) can be used to ensure that the performance level of the glazing used in the energy model is met in the completed building. This must be accompanied by evidence that the performance of the assumed glazing does not impose overly onerous requirements on future tenants and that it falls within the scope of glazing typically used in retail developments. Alternatively, the assessment can be based on worst permissible performance under the relevant national building regulations. In all cases, for shell only assessments, the assessment method detailed in CN1 (for UK New Construction 2014 and International New Construction 2016) and Assessment type specific note 1.3 (for UK New Construction 2018 and UKNC V6) must be followed.

24/08/2022 - Reference and applicability to UKNC V6 added
14 11 2017 Wording amended to clarify the intent

Shell only – zero net regulated carbon emissions - KBCN0567

For Shell only projects, 12 credits can be awarded when the EPR_EDratio is 0.90, without the requirement for zero net regulated CO₂ emissions applying. Shell only projects only assess the buildings heating and cooling energy demand and so credits are awarded just on this basis.

Shell only – Energy modelling requirements - KBCN1488

For a shell only assessment, only the EPR demand metric is used to determine the energy performance. Therefore, we would not expect to see improvements to equipment and services accounted for in the BRUKL/NCM calculation. It is, therefore, recommended that assessors submit a BRUKL/NCM document incorporating the fabric improvements, but which retains the equipment and services of the notional building with heating and cooling provided by multi-split systems. Credits for shell only assessments are determined by the demand metric alone. The inclusion of more efficient equipment and services may, therefore, lead to lower heat gains, a subsequent increase in demand for space heating and, hence, a lower number of credits being awarded.

28 Aug 2022 - Guidance updated and applied to UKNC V6

Statutory requirements for energy modelling differ from BREEAM - KBCN0127

For the purposes of BREEAM, Issue Ene 01 should be assessed using a BRUKL output based on the prevalent UK country Building regulations applicable to that scheme. This applies even when the building does not need to undertake energy modelling to comply with Building Regulations.

Where a different analysis is required for statutory compliance, due to the location of the project or registration to an earlier or later version of Part L, a different output must be produced for this purpose.

Alternatively, where applicable, the BREEAM registration could be updated to the latest version, so the same energy model output can be used for both purposes. To maintain consistency and comparability for all assessments registered to a scheme.

24/08/2022 Applicability to UKNC V6 confirmed

Use of as-designed BRUKL output for post-construction submission - KBCN0889

Where it is not possible to produce an as-built BRUKL output for the post-construction assessment, it is acceptable to produce an updated as-designed BRUKL output that accurately reflects the constructed building as evidence for the post-construction submission. A justification should be issued to QA clarifying why an as-designed BRUKL was submitted, along with confirmation from the relevant specialist that the model is an accurate representation of the final, as-built specification of the building.

24/08/2022 Applicability to UKNC V6 confirmed

[KBCN withdrawn] ~ Exemplary credit – software output figures - KBCN0265

This KBCN has been withdrawn and is no longer valid.

KBCN withdrawn on 21/07/2021:

In order to demonstrate that up to four exemplary level credits can be awarded for Ene 01, the primary energy generated by the carbon neutral technologies will need to be calculated by applying the relevant primary energy factor.
These figures are taken from the approved building energy calculation software output.
For guidance on completing this calculation and to obtain primary energy factors please contact BRE Global.

Please note that this is applicable only to BREEAM UK New Construction 2014 and 2011 Issue 3.0, and more recent issues.

[KBCN withdrawn] ~ Separate energy models for a single assessment - KBCN00011

This KBCN is now superseded. Please refer to KBCN0216

KBCN withdrawn.
This KBCN is suspended, pending technical review. When undertaking a similar buildings assessment, compliance must be based on the worst-performing unit for Issue Ene 01 as stated below and in the technical manuals. The area-weighted approach may only be used where multiple buildings falling under the same building type, which require separate energy models are operating as a single entity with a single occupier, such as a school. For building types other than schools, should you consider there is justification to apply the area-weighted approach, please seek advice from BRE by submitting a technical query.

Superseded content:

Where the assessment is using the Similar Buildings approach as outlined in GN10, compliance under Ene 01 must be based on the worst performing unit. In the Assessment Scoring & Reporting (S&R) tool the value entered for building floor area can be the combined area of the buildings assessed rather than just the area of the worst case building, as this shouldn’t affect the calculation of the Ene 01 score.

In certain situations, a single assessment with multiple energy models may not follow the Similar Buildings approach as this would unreasonably impact the overall performance. An example of this could be a school assessment with a separate sports hall included in the same assessment.
In these cases, the methodology below applies:
1. For each energy model, input the notional and actual performance figures into the scoring and reporting tool to determine individual EPRs.
2. Manually area-weight each individual EPR to calculate an area-weighted average EPR for the assessment.
3. Use table 25 in the NC 2014 manual, Ene 01, to determine the number of credits awarded.
We will provide an amended S&R tool which will have the relevant cell unlocked to allow the number of credits to be manually inputted. In terms of evidence for QA, we would require screenshots of the S&R EPR outputs for each building and a copy of the area weighting calculation.
Please seek advice from the BRE if in doubt on which methodology applies to your project.

15/02/2018 KBCN Suspended and clarification note added pending review and publication of further guidance.
04/06/2018 KBCN No longer applicable. Reference to GN10 v1.0 added.
31/10/2018 Re-formatted for clarity and reference to GN10 removed from superseded content to avoid confusion.

New Construction / UK / 2014 / 03-Energy /