Commercial buildings and properties make up a large proportion of the environment we live in and serve as a major platform for the country’s industries and provide the public with areas in which to shop, socialise and work. Despite all of this, commercial buildings are also among some of the poorest performing buildings regarding energy efficiency.
According to the Committee on Climate Change (CCC), the commercial sector is responsible for 26% of all greenhouse gas emissions within the UK. It has been estimated by the Global Footprint Network that if commercial buildings continue to carry on the way they are, the global budget will blow and lock in more than 2C of global warming in 17 years.
How to Be More Energy Efficient?
- Ensure there is a significant investment in skills and capacity to further enhance building management and deliver energy efficient refurbishment.
- A proper installation of low carbon generation capacity.
- Detailed design, manufacturing and fabrication of energy efficiency regarding products and services.
It is also worth taking into account heating and lighting as they are two areas which use the most energy. It has been stated that commercial buildings are responsible for over 30% of energy consumption all over the world while 15% is used for heating and cooling within interior spaces.
Right now, the heating is largely based on fossil fuels burning but by implementing low or zero carbon heating methods, such as solar, thermal or heat pumps, then commercial buildings have the potential to lower CO2 emissions by 3 gigatonnes over the next 34 years.
In summary, an efficient building is a working one and by looking at how much energy commercial buildings consume, they have the power to change how much they use and look for other options regarding energy.