Overcoming the split incentive barrier in the building sector

A JRC workshop on split incentives organised in the framework of article 19(1)(a) of the Energy Efficiency Directive (Directive) has been organised in order to examine current solutions addressing split incentives in the building sector in Europe and beyond. The workshop focused on the social housing, private residential and commercial sectors. Practices from Italy, the Netherlands, the UK, Denmark, Sweden and the US were presented and a panel discussion between representatives from groups of landlords, tenants, social housing and ESCOs was held. This report provides a summary of the presented material.JRC.F.7 - Renewables and Energy Efficienc

Transient buoyancy-driven flows in multi-storey buildings: the fluid mechanics of linked vessels

The research focuses on the development of mathematical models for describing transient flows within and between connected fluid-filled vessels. The fluid mechanics of connected vessels is of broad interest and numerous examples may be found in industry, the built environment and the laboratory. This work focuses primarily on the interaction between three connecting vessels and considers two main areas of application: (i) the so-called `double-tank' method, as used by experimental fluid dynamicists to stratify environments, and (ii) the passive transient ventilation of multi-storey buildings. An analytical description of the double-tank method, a classic example of liquid exchanges under controlled (constant) flow rates between horizontally connected vessels, was developed. Subsequently, a new technique was proposed, modelled and tested which enabled a broader range of density stratifications to be set up and without the use of pumps. This technique enabled liquids to drain freely under gravity from one vessel to another - the rates of liquid transfer no longer constant but functions of the instantaneous liquid depths. Modelling the fluid mechanics of multi-storey building ventilation added additional tiers of complexity as air and heat exchanged between rooms drive turbulent mixing and there is complex feedback between the individual rooms. Three vessels were again considered, two storeys connected to a common atrium, and the development of the buoyancy- driven flow following the activation of heat sources was investigated. A description of the transient response of the ventilation in an atrium building leading to a steady state, as typically achieved during the course of a day, was developed. Wind pressure variations and solar heat gains in the atrium were also incorporated. The effect of atria geometry on the ventilation of adjoining rooms was established and shown to be analogous to either an `assisting' or an `opposing' wind. When `opposing', the ventilation flow rate reduced. For a strongly `opposing' atrium, a reversal in the direction of flow through the storey occurred, revealing the possibility of multiple flow regimes during the transients - the dynamics of which were explored. Finally, the building ventilation model was generalised to n storeys (n > 2) connecting to a common atrium. Controversially, the implications of the predictions indicate that current atrium designs do not guarantee enhanced flow as is generally accepted

Specialization in the Presence of Trade and Financial Integration: Explorations of the Integration-Specialization Nexus

In this paper we investigate the economic integration - industrial specialization nexus and unravel the relationship between trade and financial openness and industrial specialization. For a panel of 31 countries over the period 1970 to 2005, we find that trade integration relates negatively to specialization, while financial integration relates positively tospecialization. Furthermore, the relationship between trade (financial) integration and specialization is further deepened by the level of financial (trade) integration. Lastly, trade integration has a stronger connection to industrial specialization in countries with a high degree of intra-industry trade, whereas financial integration has a stronger connectionto specialization in countries with a relatively underdeveloped financial system. Our findings are robust to various measures and alternative model specifications.financial economics and financial management ;

Knowledge Spillovers from Creation to Exploitation: A Theoretical Model with Implications for Firms and Public Policy

In this paper we present an endogenous growth model in which we investigate the implications of knowledge spillovers between knowledge creators (inventors) and commercializers (innovators). We then turn to the question how such knowledge spillovers affect value creation within and among organizations as well as at the aggregate level and discuss how the internalization of these knowledge spillovers can help improve economic performance at both levels.knowledge spillovers; innovation management; strategic entrepreneurship

Assessing progress towards the EU energy efficiency targets using index decomposition analysis

To track the real progress towards the energy efficiency targets, this report examines the drivers behind EU energy consumption trends using index decomposition analysis. Energy consumption trends are driven by several factors beyond energy efficiency improvements, including economic activity, demography, lifestyle changes, weather and other factors. These can all have a profound effect in the aggregate energy use, irrespective of the impact of energy efficiency policies and measures. The separation of energy efficiency impacts from structural and activity changes of the economy as a whole is conducted by applying the widely-used Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index (LMDI) methodology to study the aggregated and sectoral energy consumption changes at EU and MS levels.JRC.C.2-Energy Efficiency and Renewable

Analysis of the annual reports 2017 under the Energy Efficiency Directive: Summary Report

This report discusses the progress towards the 2020 Energy Efficiency targets and towards the implementation of the provisions of the Energy Efficiency Directive 2012/27/EU (EED), providing an overview of the main energy trends in the European Union with special focus on the period 2005-2015. It is based on the last EUROSTAT data available and on the analysis provided by Member States within their Annual Reports 2017, under the EED.JRC.C.2-Energy Efficiency and Renewable

A real interlocutor in elicitation techniques: does it matter?

This study investigates whether adding a real interlocutor to elicitation techniques would result in requests that are different from those gathered through versions with a hypothetical interlocutor. For this purpose, a written method is chosen. One group of 40 students receive a written discourse completion task (DCT) with two situations that ask respondents to write emails on paper to an imaginary professor. This data is compared to earlier data collected from 27 students, where a group of students composed emails for the same situations and sent them electronically to their professor. Thus, while one group write emails to a hypothetical professor, the other group is provided with a real interlocutor. The data is analyzed for the inclusion of opening and closing moves, density, the level of directness and the choices of moves in the opening and closing sequences, as well as the choices of supportive moves. Results indicate significant differences in (the) level of directness, and the choices of moves in the opening and closing sequences. The other analyses do not show significant differences. The findings reveal that the addition of a real interlocutor does make a difference, albeit not a drastic one. The results have implications for the design of elicitation techniques that aim to simulate real life

Energy Service Companies in the EU: Status review and recommendations for further market development with a focus on Energy Performance Contracting

Building on its previous reports, investigating the status of the ESCO market in the EU, the Joint Research Centre (JRC) reviewed the efforts made by Member States to stimulate the market of energy services, and in particular the market for EPC, during the period 2014-2016 and the current size of the ESCO market. The findings in this report show new developments since the last report published by the JRC in 2014 for the period 2010-2013.JRC.C.2-Energy Efficiency and Renewable