Retrofit assessment: Getting it right from the start

The UK has some of the oldest buildings in Europe. They are also some of the worst performing in terms of energy performance. In tandem with these issues the UK has committed to making a substantial reduction in CO2 emissions. UK homes are currently responsible for almost 20 per cent of CO2 emissions. This leaves little option other than to make considerable progress with the retrofitting of homes to improve their energy performance. This is a technical process, however, and can introduce risks to building and their occupants. Examples exist of homes being retrofitted with disastrous consequences. Some of these issues can be due to the lack of thorough examination of a home before it undergoes a retrofit. This paper proposes a method that provides a detailed pre-retrofit assessment of a home, to fall in line with PAS 2035, a standard that provides guidance around publicly funded retrofit in the UK

A Practitioner Study into the Variability of Domestic Energy Assessments

This paper focuses on the assessment of a domestic property’s energy performance status by a Domestic Energy Assessor (DEA), to ascertain the possible underlying reasons for variability in the results of Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs). By variability we mean discrepancies in assessment between different DEAs on similar properties. This is important because the uses for the EPC have been extended beyond their original function as an asset rating system, to include a wider range of themes encompassing issues such as building policy decisions, building performance, and the distribution of incentives and grants. As a consequence, inaccuracies in EPC reporting will have a greater impact than may have been the case at their outset

HBIM: Low-cost sensors and environmental data in heritage buildings - A guide for practitioners and professionals

This guide is intended to introduce the heritage conservation professional to the use of low cost sensors to capture environmental data in occupied heritage buildings, for the purposes of enhancing the heritage preservation practice with the capability for real-time monitoring and analysis of the buildings state.The first part of this document is an introduction to the applications of sensors and data capture in buildings, followed by a more detailed discussion of the particular variables to be captured and the technology available. The second part is a guide to choosing equipment, deployment, and using the captured data, with recommendations for best practice

A guide for monitoring the effects of climate change on heritage building materials and elements

This report is concerned with advanced tools and methods for monitoring the effects of climate change in buildings. It addresses the expected changes, the effects on the fabric of a heritage building, and the mechanisms of deterioration. This will be addressed only using the data and measurements that is being collected as part of the HBIM process.This report was produced as a part of a Newton Fund-sponsored research project 'Heritage Building Information Modelling and Smart Heritage Buildings Performance Measurements for Sustainability

A comparison of data collection methods for spatial analysis

This report looks at three methods for capturing the geometry of buildings and their elements to be used in the generation of energy models of those buildings. A heritage building in Salford, UK, is used as a case study, receiving each data collection method. Energy models developed based upon data collected for this building is analysed for variations in geometry and predictions of energy performance

Bellway Homes "The Future Home" Baseline Performance Report

This report examines the fabric thermal performance of a prototype home (The Future Home, or TFH) built by Bellway Homes. The home was designed and built to meet the anticipated Future Homes Standard in terms of fabric performance. The research was carried out under controlled conditions at the Energy House 2.0 facility at the University of Salford (UK). The aim of the research was to characterise the building and identify any gaps between the design values and the actual performance.The researchers examined the whole house heat loss, measured U-values, and the airtightness characteristics of the home. The overall fabric heat loss of TFH was 7.7% worse than the SAP design model predicted, a significant contribution to this underperformance was the measured air permeability of TFH, which was found to be worse 61% than the design. However when this whole house heat loss is compared to other studies on new build homes then this is considered to be well performing

Police Whistleblowing: A systematic review of the likelihood (and the barriers and facilitators) of the willingness of police officers to report the misconduct of fellow officers

Introduction Recent high-profile cases of police misconduct have revealed that officers were often aware of misconduct, but remained silent, compromising public trust in law enforcement. Here, we systematically review ‘police whistleblowing’ literature to identify barriers and facilitators to officers challenging misconduct. Methodology Employing PRISMA guidelines, we systematically reviewed 118 relevant papers, extracting data and coding key variables including who the ‘target’ of the research was; whether reporting practices were studied, and whether practical solutions were offered. A reflexive thematic analysis then assessed consensus among researchers within the literature. Results Five themes - 1) knowledge and rules, 2) consequences, 3) interpersonal relations, 4) responsibility, and 5) police culture and group relations – emerged as barriers and facilitators to whistleblowing. The review revealed relatively poorer representation of internal police reporting structures and limited practical solutions, with only 40 papers proposing strategies, predominantly centred on training and education. Discussion This review highlights methodological limitations in existing research, with an overreliance on survey methods and a dominant focus on the characteristics of individuals over the structural constraints of reporting. The positive impacts of whistleblowing on policing as an institution and the development of practical strategies to overcome officers' reluctance to report misconduct remain largely unexplored

Saint Gobain & Barratt Developments “eHome2” Baseline Performance Report

This report examines the fabric thermal performance of a prototype home (eHome2) built through a partnership with Saint Gobain and Barratt homes. The home was designed and built to meet the anticipated Future Homes Standard in terms of fabric performance. The research was carried out under controlled conditions at the Energy House 2.0 facility at the University of Salford (UK). The aim of the research was to characterise the building and identify any gaps between the design values and the actual performance.The researchers examined the whole house heat loss, measured U-values, and the airtightness characteristics of the home. The overall fabric heat loss of eHome2 was 3.9% worse than the SAP design model predicted, the majority of the 3.9% difference was due to the plane element heat loss, such as walls, roofs, doors, and windows, being greater than the design value. The measured air permeability of eHome2, was found to be better than the design, with an over-performance of 6.3%. When this whole house heat loss is compared to other studies on new build homes then this is considered to be well performing

Integrating ecosystem markets to co-ordinate landscape-scale public benefits from nature

Ecosystem markets are proliferating around the world in response to increasing demand for climate change mitigation and provision of other public goods. However, this may lead to perverse outcomes, for example where public funding crowds out private investment or different schemes create trade-offs between the ecosystem services they each target. The integration of ecosystem markets could address some of these issues but to date there have been few attempts to do this, and there is limited understanding of either the opportunities or barriers to such integration. This paper reports on a comparative analysis of eleven ecosystem markets in operation or close to market in Europe, based on qualitative analysis of 25 interviews, scheme documentation and two focus groups. Our results indicate three distinct types of markets operating from the regional to national scale, with different modes of operation, funding and outcomes: regional ecosystem markets, national carbon markets and green finance. The typology provides new insights into the operation of ecosystem markets in practice, which may challenge traditionally held notions of Payment for Ecosystem Services. Regional ecosystem markets, in particular, represent a departure from traditional models, by using a risk-based funding model and aggregating both supply and demand to overcome issues of free-riding, ecosystem service trade-offs and land manager engagement. Central to all types of market were trusted intermediaries, brokers and platforms to aggregate supply and demand, build trust and lower transaction costs. The paper outlines six options for blending public and private funding for the provision of ecosystem services and proposes a framework for integrating national carbon markets and green finance with regional ecosystem markets. Such integration may significantly increase funding for regenerative agriculture and conservation across multiple habitats and services, whilst addressing issues of additionality and ecosystem service trade-offs between multiple schemes

The Grizzly, November 3, 1992

Senior Party Success • Keith Strunk Rallies Student Support • Vote: Our Future Depends on Us • Smoking Danger Update • Blue Eyes, Brown Eyes • Phi Psi Clothes Drive • Truth About Tomatoes • Coffee House: Good to the Last Drop! • Coffee Talk • Singles Review • Fresh Brewed, Mountain Grown, 70\u27s Rock • New Berman Endowment to Preserve Outdoor Art • Another Dark Hit Brewed by Waters • Choir Percolates a Performance • In Search of Purpose • Letters to the Editor • Intramural Football Culminates in Thriller • Field Hockey Struggles; Season Ends This Week • Volleyball Finished Season with Split • Football Battles Ranked W.P.I.https://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/grizzlynews/1303/thumbnail.jp