DIGITAL AND

ENVIRONMENTAL SKILLS
FOR FACILITIES
MANAGEMENT

O3 - A1 Learning Unit 1
Sustainability and Environmental Issues
and their Impact on FM

Project Start Date - October 1st, 2016

Project End Date - March 31, 2019
Duration in months - 30 months
Project code 2016 -1-UK01-KA202-
024420

DATE: 01 DECEMBER 2017 - Prepared by:

Learning Unit 1 Description
Title Sustainability and Environmental Issues and their Impact
on FM
Description This learning unit introduces the learner to sustainability
and environmental management and provides basic facts
and principles that improve resource efficiency in or for
buildings, covering different types of FM operations. It
introduces to the key EU and national legislation on
environmental issues.

Overall Learning Learners should understand key concepts of the

Outcome environmental and sustainability principles in order to
develop a coherent and efficient saving energies policy.
Also, learners should comprehend what EU and national
environmental laws address and know which the main
legislation covering the various topics related to energy
saving practices for the building industries.

EQF level 4-5

Duration 20 hrs NLT
ECVET credits 1
Prerequisites General
Assessment 1 assignment: case-study (5 open-ended questions
and/or multiple choice test).
Learning Outcome 1 Describe the fundamental principles of environmental
management and sustainability in relation to FM.
Learning Outcome 2 State at least 3 energy saving measures for buildings.
Learning Outcome 3 Explain how to manage and implement energy efficiency
within the buildings in the short- and long-term.
Learning Outcome 4 State the main national and EU environmental policy
principles (laws) on energy saving practices for the
building industry.
Learning Outcome 5 Advise customers on how to improve resource efficiency
in or for buildings.
 Sustainability
Sustainability has increasingly become a rising concern for all areas of life

Increasing population size and living standards are resulting in degradation of earth’s
resources

Developing need to “meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their own needs” Former Prime Minister of Norway, Gro Harlem Brundtland.
Societal requirement to take Earth’s carrying capacity into account across all sections of life

Sustainable practices;
recognise the needs of everyone
protect the environment
carefully use natural resources
maintain high and stable levels of economic growth and employment
The Business Case for Sustainability in the UK Property Sector
 The current dilemma of the human-being

The human-being as a part of the The human-being as influence of the

environment environment
 Sustainability
Environmental, Social and Economic responsibility

Sustainability is an overarching ethos covering three areas which must interlink

Sustainable development
Wide range of sub topics
Impacts on all aspects of life
Much wider than environmental and energy issues Economic
UN Sustainable Development Agenda lists 17 Goals
Economics, food, health, education, energy,
infrastructure, equality, construction,
climate, land & water

Environmental Social
The target of the Facility Management

Social Economical
costs costs

Environmental

new slide
costs

Optimal “Triple Bottom Line”

 Sustainability in Facilities Management
Energy
Waste
Water
Productivity
Maintenance
Lifecycle costs
Total cost of ownership
Organisation behavioural change
Compliance with regulation
Ergonomics & occupational quality conditions (air quality and velocity, temperature, humidity, illumination,
health & safety, etc.)
 Sustainability in Facilities Management
A wider view of sustainability incorporates;
Social value
Agile working
Wellbeing
Social value

Sustainability has grown in overall importance within the FM sector;

35% say it is extremely important and 37% say it is very important.

The main reasons for sustainability’s importance are;

Resource and cost management
Customer expectations
Legislative compliance
Health/safety
British Institute of Facilities Management;
Ethics and community investment
Sustainability Survey 2017
‘Green’ image
 Environmental Management
The active management of society’s impact on the environment.

Balance the use of natural resources and unsustainable materials

Pollution control
Waste management
Natural resource consumption
Public health
Recycling
Compliance with environmental regulation
Development and Implementation of Environmental management policies
 Environmental Management Policies
Statement of key points the organisation wishes to achieve with actions to be taken on;
Waste
Resources
Recycling
Compliance with legislation

Policy should achieve buy-in across all levels within the organisation

Policy should be communicated;

Internally within the organisation
Externally to customers and suppliers
 Environmental Management Policies
Regular monitoring and reporting of outcomes to ensure progress
Promotion of achievements
Consider implementing ISO 14001 (Environmental Management)
 Improving resource efficiency
Resource efficiency increasingly important as input costs rise
Valuable method of reducing running costs and overheads
Opportunity to release funds for facility improvements
Environmental and social benefits to be gained by becoming more resource efficient
Enhances the FM Company’s profile and can be used as a powerful tool to attract new business

Resource Efficient Scotland; Resource Efficiency in Schools

 Methods to improve resource efficiency
What is the current baseline?
Collect & Analyse Data (benchmarking)
Electricity/oil/gas consumption
Waste production & practices
Water & waste water
Review of any current resource efficiency practice
Discussion with building users
Scale of opportunity for savings is influenced by the initial building fabric and operations being carried out
within it
 Improving resource efficiency - strategy
Setting SMART Targets for resource efficiency

• Achieve buy-in from across the organisation

• Ensure targets allow achievement of numerous goals

• Consider achievement of legal requirements

• Set short and Long term targets for achievement

• Include anticipated costs/budget for each action

• Consider the quick wins to give early success Resource Efficient Scotland; Resource Efficiency in Schools

• Promotion of the activities being undertaken

 Reducing Resource Use in Buildings
Consumption of resources and environmental impacts of a building can be reduced by:

Promoting better initial building design

Weighting resource use against the needs and functionality of the building
Considering future need for re-configuration or deconstruction
Ensuring a greater use of energy efficient products
Using recycled materials & reusing existing materials
Promoting more resource efficient construction and renovation
Reducing waste sent to landfill by using the waste hierarchy
Placing a financial value on being resource efficiency.
Involving the competences of the facility manager during the design
to reduce the resource use during the building operation.
Sustainability, Environmental & Resource Efficiency Opportunity
Buildings are responsible for;
40% of energy consumption in EU
36% of CO2 emissions in the EU

Older buildings typically require 5-7 times more energy than new buildings with 35% of the EU's buildings being
over 50 years old.

By improving the energy efficiency of existing buildings, the total EU energy consumption and CO 2 emissions
could be reduced by 5-6%.
https://ec.europa.eu/energy/en/topics/energy-efficiency/buildings

About 75% of buildings are energy inefficient

Depending on the Member State, only 0.4-1.2% of the stock is renovated each year.
 Energy Saving in Facilities Management
Data
Accurate and detailed energy data is an essential requirement and allows for;
Tracking of impact of changes in building management practices
Comparison between similar buildings
Comparison of annual energy consumption
Identification of areas within properties needing special attention

Energy management will assist in reducing the performance gap between building design/targets and the
actual performance achieved on site

Energy saving policy will heavily influence;

Reactive and planned maintenance decisions
Replacement equipment purchase specifications
 Steps to improve energy efficiency

1. Energy audit and measure: Collect the data and analyze

2. Fix the basics: Deploy low cost, high yield fixes to blatant energy waste
3. Optimize through automation and regulation: Integrate energy management into everyday processes
through use of modern, high efficiency technologies
4. Monitor, maintain, and improve: ensure savings are embedded and sustained
5. Does the operator have a full understanding of the Building Management System (BMS)?

6. Consider implementing ISO 50001 (Energy Management)

www.schneider-electric.com
 Energy efficiency at all costs?
What gives the best value for money
Initial capital expenditure Vs payback period
Complexity of new build or retrofit into existing space
Requirements and cost of maintenance
Accessibility of all installed energy equipment
Is the equipment easy to operate
How will others who are not familiar with the system engage with it?
Eliminate as much as possible the influence of the space users to the energy efficiency and involve as much a
possible state-of-the-art technical solutions in this regard (in general the occupants take care much more about
their daily tasks and obligation than the energy efficiency and savings)
 Heating considerations
Is a consistent temperature required
Can heating systems be turned down at night
What are the hours of occupation (if possible look for tenants with similar working time)
Type of activities occurring in the building
Is heat generating equipment being used – can excess heat be re-used?
Requirement for cooling?
Position of sensors within the room?
Use window sensors to turn off the heating/cooling when the windows are open
Appropriate type of heat source - underfloor / radiant / air
Thermal comfort for occupants (dependant on type of work undertaken)
Ceiling heights
Overall building fabric
Servicing of heat generating plant and equipment
Requirement for hot water
Use local technical solutions for special cases (for example cooling for server rooms)
 Efficient Lighting Practices
General move to LED lighting (take care about the cos f, resp. the so called reactive energy)
Required Lux levels? In which particular areas?
Anticipated occupancy and working hours
Opportunity for improving natural lighting
Glare on screens and IT systems from windows?
Accounting for thermal gain from incoming solar?
Occupancy sensors – are these suitable and correctly positioned?
Sensors linked to building ventilation & heating?
 What is the opportunity for renewables?
Significant investment aiming to result in a saving in energy costs over time

Standard renewables now common and technology well understood

Care and due diligence required to ensure technology and supplier are suitable
Installation influenced by local subsidies for renewable power (need to investigate the format of these to build any
business case)
Liability may fall to the FM organisation for installation and operation
Performance contracts / Energy Supply Contracts to be negotiated
Financial savings – who will be the beneficiary?
Renewable Energy % Use in the EU
 Energy efficiency – short & long term
Short term
Localised sub-metering
Half hourly data where possible
Data capture & analysis across estate
Day & night consumption comparison
Review of BMS settings
Identification of significant loads
Review of sensor locations
Review of occupancy levels
Long term
• Comparative data analysis over time
• Specification of low energy replacement plant
• Installation of renewable technology
• Localised energy generation and storage
• Refurbishment of building fabric
• Changing of occupant energy ethos
 EU Policy for the Building Industry
Key directives relevant to buildings:

• The European Performance of Buildings Directive 2002 (EPBD)

• The Energy Services Directive 2006 (ESD)
• The Renewable Energy Supply Directive 2009 (RES)
• The EPBD recast of 2010
• Energy Efficiency Directive 2012
• Construction Products Regulation 2011
• Waste Framework Directive 2008

It is important for facilities managers to understand the driving forces behind the change in the
industry Through Legislation, emphasis has moved towards enhanced energy performance across
the building sector.
Climate Change and Energy Conservation Legislation
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)

• Scientific body established in 1988 by the United Nations.

• The IPCC advises member governments on the impact of human activities on climate change.

• IPCC publishes climate assessment reports, the latest (Fifth) of which was completed in 2014.

• IPPC 2014 report indicates an increase in certainty that humans are responsible for global warming. From
90% - “very likely” in the 2007 report to 95% - “extremely likely” now.
 Climate Change and Energy Conservation
• The Framework Convention on Climate Change was agreed at the 1992 United
Nations - UNCED in Rio de Janeiro and has been ratified by 190 countries.
• It sets an overall framework for intergovernmental efforts to address climate change.
• In 2015, all (then) 196 then parties to the convention came together for the UN
Climate Change Conference in Paris. The Paris Agreement entered into force on
November 4, 2016
• The Paris Agreement, aimed at limiting global warming to less than two degrees
Celsius, and pursue efforts to limit the rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius

uk.businessinsider.com

www.un.org
EU Policy related to Energy Performance of Buildings
• The European Commission (EC) is particularly active in energy policy-making.
• 2005 - principle of mandatory energy policy requirements for member states introduced.

• In 2007, the EU was the largest importer of gas and oil in the world.
• The current Energy Policy for Europe emphases energy security, the promotion of energy
efficiency and the deployment of renewable and sustainable energy sources.

Further legislation includes

• EU Emissions Trading System
• Industrial Emissions Directive
• Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Directive
Energy Performance of Buildings Directive Recast 2010
The EPBD Recast 2010 enhanced and expanded on the 2002 Directive. The main objective
is to achieve nearly zero energy new buildings mainly based on renewable energy sources
by 2020.
• Public Buildings: requires all new buildings to be (NZEB) by public bodies by 31st
December 2018
• Near Zero Energy Buildings: requires all new buildings to be (NZEB) by 31st December
2020
• Cost Optimal Performance: takes into account the cost implications over the life cycle of
the building including investment, maintenance, operating costs and energy savings
• System Requirements: in respect to installation, sizing, adjustment and controls.
• Alternative Energy Systems: feasibility to be given due consideration prior to construction
• Energy Performance Certificates: The introduction of more rigorous inspection, display
and monitoring procedures
• Inspection programmes: for heating and air conditioning plant
• Minimum energy performance requirements: for new buildings, major renovations and
replacement or retrofit of building elements
• Lists of national financial measures: to improve the energy efficiency of buildings.
 Energy Efficiency Directive
Sets out energy savings requirements for EU countries' buildings.

EU countries must;
• Make energy efficient renovations to at least 3% of central government buildings
• Only purchase government buildings which are highly energy efficient
• Draw-up long-term national building renovation strategies
• Draw up strategies to show how they will invest in the renovation of residential and commercial buildings

National Energy Efficiency Action Plans (NEEAPs)

Revised every three years and reported annually, NEEAPs set out;
• estimated energy consumption
• planned energy efficiency measures
• the improvements individual EU countries expect to achieve
Contacts

Coordinator

SOUTH WEST COLLEGE (SWC)

Mountjoy Road 2
Omagh Tyrone, BT79 7AH
United Kingdom

Phone:+448456031881
Website: www.swc.ac.uk
Email: defmaproject@gmail.com