INDUSTRY FOCUS building practices to a new awareness of the minimum standards required by the amended legislation . Although challenging at the time , this has also proved beneficial , because it has forced many professionals to be more conscious of what they are designing . So , rather than designing something just to look “ nice ”, one is now forced to implement functional design principles that have been around since the dawn of architecture , when buildings were intended to be functional elements in harmony with their environment , rather than just objects of beauty or status symbols .
INDUSTRY FOCUS building practices to a new awareness of the minimum standards required by the amended legislation . Although challenging at the time , this has also proved beneficial , because it has forced many professionals to be more conscious of what they are designing . So , rather than designing something just to look “ nice ”, one is now forced to implement functional design principles that have been around since the dawn of architecture , when buildings were intended to be functional elements in harmony with their environment , rather than just objects of beauty or status symbols .
This means that while many are willing to try to comply , the new regulations do increase the possibility of errors . I was recently in a house where the water from the hot tap would run hot for about five seconds and then go cold – because the hot-water system was not going through the geyser and was feeding direct from the cold water supply , siphoning off a little hot water along the way .
Ultimately , the responsibility of enforcing the regulations lies with the architectural professional .
Architects often have to educate their clients , most of whom are not familiar with the regulations . It can be difficult to explain to a client that the regulations require certain non-aesthetic but costly building solutions , and that some luxury design items may have to be sacrificed in order to comply . It is all about changing the mindset of the public in general and the client in particular , and embracing the new legislation as a valuable resource . And although there may be additional costs upfront in the building process , energy efficiencies will recover those costs over time .
The new regulations have also slightly increased production time and the architectural professional ’ s workload , as detailed calculations have to be made of hot-water consumption , building orientation , window efficiency and lighting energy consumption . This requires more detailed drawings at the council submission stage of the project .
Many contractors and subcontractors are not as familiar with the building regulations as they should be . It can be challenging to tell them that the way they have been building is wrong , and to persuade them to follow the drawings and specifications explicitly . For example , very few plumbers know how to install a hot-water system with a ring main system . Even though these regulations have been around for decades , they have never been properly enforced by the local authorities , so many installations have been done incorrectly and inefficiently .
Cost implications of the legislation
The legislation has affected building costs , but not exorbitantly . An obvious example is the window regulations for houses in areas where large picture windows are popular to take advantage of the views . This may require large areas of double glazing , which is at least double the price of single glazing . Heat pumps and solar systems are expensive , and LED light bulbs are much more expensive than the old-fashioned incandescent bulbs .
However , one must offset these costs against the energy saving in the long run . For example , a heat pump is 70 % more efficient than a geyser element , LEDs use about 80 % less energy than incandescent bulbs , and insulation and thermally efficient windows reduce heating and cooling costs . Taking these factors into account , the long-term savings are substantial .
Creative solutions and software to assist with cost management
The calculations required to maximise thermal , light and water efficiency are very complicated , so most architects use software specifically designed to calculate the most efficient way of conforming to the regulations , or even – as I usually recommend to my clients – going beyond them in energy and water saving . For example , I recently completed a residence that required only single glazing , but I was fortunate enough to