Innovative Building Energy Codes
Project Overview
Status: Complete (2018)
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The research project focused on building energy codes (BECs) as a tool to foster the energy transition. The project investigated new approaches, concepts and elements of international BECs as input for the potential future design and development of the Swiss cantonal model regulations in the energy sector (MuKEn).
Our team scanned the international landscape for innovative BECs and assessed them through a comprehensive framework to evaluate their setup, implementation challenges, and performance across multiple metrics. We used document analysis, scanned secondary literature, and conducted 19 expert interviews with local practitioners, regulators, and researchers.
Assessing the building energy codes of Denmark, France, England, Switzerland, and Sweden, we evaluated six innovative designs of BECs and highlight how they advance building decarbonization by increasing energy efficiency and renewable energies, considering embodied energy, closing the performance gap, and accelerating retrofits. Based on the implementation challenges experienced we derive six policy principles for advancing the development and implementation of new building energy codes.
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Please contact Christof Knoeri or Marian Krüger for more information.
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Click here for the official project webpage.
Funding and Partners
