Mobile CAD Surveying Ltd

From the 1st October 2008 all commercial buildings over 50m² now require a Non-Domestic Energy Performance Certificate (NDEPC). The purpose of the NDEPC is to assess a buildings' CO2 emissions in line with the requirements of Building Regulations (Part L).

Buildings account for almost half of the energy consumption and carbon emissions in the UK. The heating and hot water used in your building can amount to half of all your energy costs.

Sitemaster Building software is now being used extensively to produce fast and accurate floor plans to assist Commercial Energy Assessment companies in the production of the new certificates.

The following types of building do not require an Energy Performance Certificate:

• Places of worship
• Stand-alone non-dwellings less than 50 m2
• Temporary buildings with a planned life less than two years
• Industrial premises with low energy use where the space is mostly not heated or cooled (such as process and heavy engineering workshops and stores with localised work-station conditioning)
• Buildings to be demolished within two years

At what point is the EPC required?

On construction: The constructor gives the Energy Performance Certificate and Recommendations Report to the purchaser on physical completion of the building and notifies Building Control, who will not issue the Certificate of Completion until the EPC is provided.

On sale/rent:

As soon as the building is offered for sale/rent the seller/landlord must make an EPC available to prospective buyers/tenants. The Energy Performance Certificate may be for the whole building or individual units, and completion of a contract should not happen without it. An EPC is required if the transaction has not completed before the implementation date above. Some multi-tenancy sale/rent scenarios are complex and you should seek advice from an accredited expert to determine whether an Energy Performance Certificate is required for the individual unit or the building as a whole.

On modification:

The person undertaking the work is responsible for providing the Energy Performance Certificate and Recommendations Report to the client. They must then notify Building Control, who will not issue the Certificate of Completion until the EPC is provided.

The maximum penalty for non-compliance is currently £5k, enforceable by Trading Standards. The penalty notice also includes the requirement to produce a valid EPC.