Welsh 2016 half-hourly building energy consumption profiles for domestic and non-domestic buildings by 2011 Census output area. Split by Local Authority Areas

These estimated Half Hourly data profiles for all the Local Authorities in Wales for the Calendar Year 2016 were derived by the Authors as part of the Institute of Welsh Affairs 'Re-energizing Wales' Project in 2017. They were produced to help understand the half hourly demand in this area of Wales with a particular focus on informing the debate about the contribution of Renewable Resources to these energy demands, both for 2016 and then by extrapolation into the future. They are derived from a mixture of Measured Data, Modelling, Ordnance Survey Data and Assumptions. Please see the accompanying Word Document to show their derivation and limitations. All publication and derived works rights in this work are retained by the authors

Welsh 2016 half-hourly building energy consumption profiles for domestic and non-domestic buildings by 2011 Census output area. Split by Local Authority Areas

These estimated Half Hourly data profiles for all the Local Authorities in Wales for the Calendar Year 2016 were derived by the Authors as part of the Institute of Welsh Affairs 'Re-energizing Wales' Project in 2017. They were produced to help understand the half hourly demand in this area of Wales with a particular focus on informing the debate about the contribution of Renewable Resources to these energy demands, both for 2016 and then by extrapolation into the future. They are derived from a mixture of Measured Data, Modelling, Ordnance Survey Data and Assumptions. Please see the accompanying Word Document to show their derivation and limitations. All publication and derived works rights in this work are retained by the authors

Improving the energy efficiency of dwellings in Gwynedd: approximating the outcome of refurbishment options for areas

The objective of this report is to provide Gwynedd Council with the foundation needed to develop robust strategies to improve the energy efficiency of dwellings within the Local Authority. A database of all available EPCs for the area is analysed to provide a picture of the current state of the housing stock. These analysed dwellings are then used to approximate the state of all dwellings, taking into account the location of properties and typological differences. Consequently, the model formed provides information on the condition of all properties within the Local Authority broken down to smaller geographical areas. This alone is a valuable knowledge base for future housing energy efficiency plans whatever the upcoming national and international strategies might be. Pathways for improvements are provided in line with current Welsh and UK energy efficiency schemes and targets. Information about each Lower Super Output Area (LSOA) is used to identify the suitability of schemes. The costs of the improvements, energy consumption reduction and SAP rating distribution improvements are calculated for each suitable scheme and target for each LSOA

Regional modelling of domestic energy consumption using stakeholder generated visions as scenarios

UK Government Carbon emission reduction targets require large scale retrofitting of the built environment. Visions of a city region in 2050 have been developed through an in-depth participatory back-casting and foresight process. This paper will explore the modelling techniques required to simulate the necessary changes to achieve the retrofitting targets for dwellings. All of the visions achieve the 80% reductions required, using different pathways. Building on earlier work based on “Bottom Up” urban scale modelling, this paper will describe the modelling of large areas using extensive data sources on the existing stock. Together with the scenario work, this research builds modelling of societal changes including population and household size, with domestic energy demand. The paper discusses the methods used and the sources of the data required to model these population and household changes. The results generated from the model show the retrofit pathways from 1990, through present day emissions, to the required levels to achieve the targets set for 2050. In addition, the outcomes of the research are visualised through mapping of the pathways across a City region

Energy and environmental report. Castleland Renewal Area, Barry

This report provides a guidance of the possible routes towards improving the energy efficiency of the existing housing stock in Castleland Renewal Area, Barry. A clustering analysis focused on domestic dwellings has been developed in order to maximise the available data, creating representative groups of the larger area. Initial data has been collected and supplied by Warm Wales, thereafter complemented and expanded by the research team at the Welsh School of Architecture, where finally the information has been entered into the Energy and Environmental Prediction (EEP) model to create a database for Castleland. The analysis has been developed out of the collaborative work between Warm Wales and the Low Carbon Research Institute, at the Welsh School of Architecture (WSA), Cardiff University

Decarbonising the Welsh housing stock: from practice to policy

This paper examines whether and how the challenging target of 95% decarbonisation can be achieved for the Welsh building stock. First, a critical review of the literature and relevant case studies are presented to understand the effectiveness of different retrofit approaches in practice, and the degree to which these approaches are evidence based, and applicable to the Welsh context. These findings are synthesised into a collection of 14 recurrent dwelling ‘archetypes’, with appropriate retrofit strategies developed for each. The impacts of these strategies are modelled in terms of capital cost, primary energy use, fuel bills and carbon emissions. Conclusions provide an evidence base for future policy and a decarbonisation strategy. Retrofit strategies should include fabric first-measures to minimise increases in household fuel bills and a consequent increase in fuel poverty. Retrofit options for a significant percentage of housing are constrained by character, which would limit changes to the external fabric. Given that decarbonisation of the future energy supply is currently uncertain, all other housing should be retrofitted to perform beyond SAP90. A flexible approach that pushes all housing to achieve stringent standards by 2050 is the only way to achieve targeted reductions in carbon emissions under the assumed energy supply scenarios

Embodied energy at an urban scale: A paradigm shift in calculations

Embodied energy has long been a focus of research, and improved operational energy demands in modern structures cause the proper analyses of embodied energies to be critical for full building life cycle analysis. Many different calculation techniques exist to arrive at an embodied energy value, and literature is full of the application of these values to predominantly single or small numbers of buildings. Embodied energy at an urban scale is studied in this paper, and a new software tool for estimating embodied energy impacts at the design stage is introduced. Two case studies are discussed using the software, and embodied energies are calculated and presented in context with their operational energy savings. The importance of choosing an embodied energy value calculated according to the process-based hybrid analysis method when looking at the urban scale is discussed

Embodied energy and operational energy: Case studies comparing different urban layouts

While significant progress has been made in reducing Operational Energy; Embodied Energy has been largely ignored. However, these topics are strongly linked and should be considered as a “Balance Equation”, where all factors must be carefully measured in order to avoid the excesses of both. A comparative study of urban layout and form utilising VIRVIL plugins (in Sketchup) with HTB2 (Heat Transfer in Buildings) indicates that urban layout have an impact on the Operational and Embodied Energy of buildings. The case studies analysed in this paper suggest that there is an advantage of Mid-rise type of buildings in terms of Operational Energy, however the Embodied Energy scenarios are less clear and seem to depend more on the use of the building