Commercial EPCs
A Commercial EPC must be obtained for all commercial buildings marketed for sale or let. A commercial EPC is valid for 10 years unless the property is let or sold.
A Commercial EPC can provide the sound basis for the development of a complete energy saving strategy for your business, with savings directly benefitting the bottom line. Energy saving initiatives will be popular not just with your accountants, but also with all stakeholders in your business. Customers, employees, suppliers, shareholders, the local community; all are likely to respect and value your business more if you are improving its carbon footprint.
Midland HIPs Commercial EPC service
Midland HIPs is qualified as a Level 3 Non-Domestic Energy Assessor (L3 NDEA). This means that, in general, we can produce Commercial EPCs for properties up to 2,500m2. We undertake Commercial EPCs across the West Midlands. Midland HIPs can provide a quotation for all Commercial EPC projects.
Business benefits of a Commercial EPC
The energy costs of commercial premises affect directly the profitability of the business. The cost effectiveness of investing in energy efficiency can be calculated very easily, with often a compelling argument for investment based on a quantifiable payback period.
Commercial EPCs are issued with recommendations for improving the energy efficiency of a building. Payback periods are indicated for each one:
- Short term payback: Less than three yearsø
- Medium term payback: Three to seven years
- Long term payback: Longer than seven years
There are tax incentives from the government for capital investment in energy conservation which are well worth exploring. We can advise further on these.
PR benefits of going green
As well as potentially compelling balance-sheet reasons for improving energy efficiency, there are good PR reasons for improving the energy usage of your commercial premises. And, let's not forget, good environmental reasons too.
Customers, shareholders, suppliers and employees will all feel better about your business if you have an active energy reduction policy. Major PLCs are racing to become carbon neutral in their activities and the impact of energy reduction from a commercial building can be the equivalent of reducing the emissions from dozens of domestic properties.
So, it makes good business sense in every respect to commission a Commercial EPC and to act upon its recommendations.
Commercial EPCs: How they are produced
Compared to domestic properties, commercial buildings have far greater variation and complexity in a number of areas which affect energy performance:
- Construction of walls, floors and roofs
- Types of windows and glazing
- Heating systems and controls
- Air conditioning
- Lighting systems and controls
- Ventilation and exhaust systems
- Renewable energy systems
This complexity is given a structure to assist in the completion of an energy performance assessment, through the use of a standard Simplified Building Energy Model (SBEM). Buildings are divided into zones, depending on the nature of their usage, and each zone is measured carefully. The size of each zone is the key index in determining energy usage.
The energy performance of a commercial building is assessed across five headings:
- Heating
- Cooling
- Auxiliary (pumps, fans, controls)
- Lighting
- Domestic hot water (DHW)
These then produce a figure for the energy used per square metre, measured in kilowatt hours: kWh/m2. A benchmarking process then takes place, comparing the energy used by the actual building and comparing this with a notional building (a 'virtual' building with the same characteristics) and a reference building (similar to notional, but always measured as a gas-fired heating and hot water system based building).
A calculation is then made of the total energy used per square metre annually by the actual, notional and reference buildings in terms of electricity and fuel use.
From this is produced a figure for the resulting annual CO2 emissions.
Lastly, the commercial property is given an EPC Rating or Asset Rating (AR).
The Asset Rating is the ratio of the CO2 emissions from the actual building, measured against a Standard Emission Rate (SER) and this is expressed as a percentage.
As with domestic EPCs, this is then related to an A-G scale and the higher up the scale the better the rating. However, the numbering procedure is reversed, with 100 being better than 0. Therefore, with a Commercial EPC, the lower the number the better, as this number relates to the amount of CO2 produced by the building.
The ultimate goal is to achieve an A+ band rating, as this will signify that a building is carbon neutral.
Exemptions from Commercial EPCs
Buildings which do not need a Commercial EPC:
- Places of worship
- Buildings with less than 50m2 of gross internal floor space
- Buildings without an enclosure of heated and or/cooled space ie barns
- Temporary buildings to be used for two years or less
Prices for Commercial EPCs
These are available on request. If the following details are known it will assist us in providing a competitive quotation.
- Address and postcode of the property to be surveyed
- The approximate total floor area of the property
- Architectural floor plans and building services drawings, preferably in electronic format
- If no building services drawings are available, please state what heating/cooling systems and other building services are present
- Contact details: Client/company name, position, email and address details.
- Invoicing/correspondance procedure
Display Energy Certificates (DEC)
Publicly owned buildings (with an internal floor area in excess of 1000m2) visited by members of the public are required to show a DEC. These are a statement of the energy usage of a building, calculated mainly from actual fuel bills.
Penalties for non-compliance
Failure to obtain a Commercial EPC will result in a hefty fine. Indications are that fines will be based on 12.5% of the rateable value of the property.
Additional issues are answered in our FAQ section:
Who is responsible for obtaining the Commercial EPC?
Who has to pay?
What happens if there is a change of tenants?
