Imtech UK Preparing For a Changing Climate

The world is changing and the building services sector has a major role to play in this change. There is a significant market trend towards buildings with higher environmental performance, increasing pressure for more sustainable development from government, lobby groups and the public, and sustainability considerations are at the core of investors and leading developers’ Corporate Responsibility agendas.

Climate change is recognised as one of the most serious problems facing the global community, and greenhouse gas emissions including carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels are believed to be a major contributor to the phenomenon. The Kyoto Protocol, which came into force on February 16th 2005, commits most industrialised nations to cut global greenhouse gas emissions by, on average, 5% below their 1990 levels over the period 2008 - 2012.

Within the UK, revisions to the Buildings Regulations have been tightened to drive improvements in the energy performance of buildings to reduce CO2 emissions by about a quarter compared to the 2002 standards. With over 30% of the emissions of cabon dioxide in the UK currently coming from buildings, the Government sees the control of energy usage as a key part of its strategy to meet its environmental commitments and halve carbon-dioxide emissions by 2050. Further measures to promote and require the use of 'low and zero carbon' energy systems are also being introduced in the Building Regulations and in Supplementary Planning Guidance on sustainable design and construction issued by many local planning authorities.

Imtech are keen advocates of the promotion of sustainable buildings which are energy efficient and utilise clean energy technologies and as a business have good knowledge of meeting and exceeding the UK’s building environmental assessment methods and rating systems such as BREEAM.

To meet the challenges of a changing climate Imtech UK have established an internal Energy & Sustainability Group to discuss these issues and to gather intelligence and knowledge to ensure there is transparent access to specialist expertise on renewable energy and, in particular, integrating zero and low carbon energy systems into buildings.

Seven key renewable energies that are on the current discussion agenda are;

  • Wind
  • Solar thermal
  • Photovoltaics
  • Ground-source heating
  • Ground-source cooling
  • Biomass heating
  • Biomass combined heat and power (CHP)

There is also a number of technologies and techniques not currently on the agenda, although some are encouraged and can be used to reduce the overall energy requirements of a project. These include passive solar heating and natural ventilation, daylighting; solar shading and incinerating domestic waste.