The EPB Center (energy performance of a building - EPB) is focused on the international harmonized set of EPB assessment methods and their implementation at national and regional levels. The Center is dedicated to provide stakeholders and interested parties with technical support for the implementation and dissemination of information on the set of EPB standards at national and regional level.

While providing this support the Center will also aim to assist with formulating needs in order to further develop and improve this set of EPB standards.

The EPB Center is an initiative of REHVA and ISSO.

The initiators of the EPB CENTER are key persons that have been involved from the start in the development of the current set of international standards related to energy performance of buildings.

Background

Both policy makers and the construction industry are confronted with a range of challenges and opportunities when it comes to reducing energy consumption and increasing the use of renewables.

The construction sector has great potential to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions, in line with the climate targets as set out in the Paris climate conference (COP21) in December 2015. Clear and consistent policy targets play an important role in driving innovation in the construction sector.

During the past 5 years, a high number of experts from many countries worked closely together to develop a coherent set of standardized methods to determine the energy performance of a building (EPB). This set enables the calculation and inspection of the overall energy performance level of a building or building design. As such, this set of methods is a key instrument to set and evaluate the national and international policy targets.

The set of EPB standards takes into account the impact of thermal insulation, air tightness, passive and active solar energy and daylighting, heating, ventilation, cooling, hot water and lighting systems. Additionally the set of EPB standards includes the effect of control and automation equipment and the dynamic climatic conditions and user patterns. This is called a “holistic” or “systemic” approach and is now available as CEN (European) standards and partly also already at global level (ISO). Altogether, this is known as “the set of EPB standards”. On the global level it is emerging as the ISO 52000 series.

Now is the time to further implement the set on national and regional level, hence establishment of the EPB Center.