Real estate firms are now requiring their portfolios to be aligned with the Paris Agreement as well as various climate change performance metrics such as SBTi, CRREM, and the EU Taxonomy for buildings. Our deep knowledge of top-down and bottom-up modelling techniques enables us to provide robust advice on how your real estate portfolio can comply with these metrics through cost-effective interventions.
Decarbonising the buildings sector must start with reducing our energy demand before exploring renewable energy options. Our consultancy approach closely follows the energy hierarchy, and we believe that the revival of traditional and passive design techniques is crucial in achieving comfortable indoor conditions in a warming climate without making the planet pay. With our expertise in building physics, dynamic energy simulations, and latest building technologies, we are able to advise on the most feasible way to meet stringent energy efficiency requirements — both for newly constructed and existing assets. Realising the extent of the ‘energy performance gap’ within the sector, we also offer to closely monitor the performance of our projects post-construction to ensure that the project performs as intended.
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Passivhaus is a German building energy certification scheme that has proven to reduce energy consumption by up to 90% compared with a typical building whilst also providing a thermally comfortable indoor environment. Stemming from our strong belief in the energy hierarchy, Joule fully supports Passivhaus and is qualified to provide comprehensive certification services — from project inception up to completion and post-occupancy monitoring.
At Joule, we acknowledge the limitations of modelling software and that they are an attempt to represent (an overly complex) reality. Nonetheless, when performed correctly, the outputs of simulations can be useful in informing important design decisions. Through our extensive knowledge of building energy simulation tools, we are able to conduct energy, daylight, and overheating assessments required under various compliance and certification schemes. This includes UK’s Part L, Part O, NABERS, LEED, Estidama, and GSAS.
In addition to the current ‘energy performance gap’, another gap within the sector is that between industry and academia — where research ideas from academia are not always transformed into practical solutions that can be adopted by the industry.
With a strong background in both academic research and practice, Joule aims to bridge that gap through fusing research-based innovations into real-life projects. Based on our strong track-record of peer-reviewed publications, Joule is also well-positioned to carry out applied research projects — ranging from testing emerging technologies to developing 1.5°C-aligned building codes and local policies.
