Regulatory Requirements for Existing Buildings

To achieve an all-round sustainable built environment, it is important to ensure that existing buildings continue to operate efficiently throughout their life cycle.

Requirements

Based on PartIIIB– Environmental Sustainability Measures for Existing Buildings in the Building Control Act, owners of existing buildings must:

• Comply with the minimum environmental sustainability standard for major energy-use change. See details below.
• Submit periodic energy efficiency audits of the building’s cooling systems. Refer to Periodic Energy Audit for more information.
• Submit information in respect of energy consumption and other related information as required by the Commissioner of Building Control. Refer to Building Energy Benchmarking for more information.
• Undergo energy audits and undertake energy efficiency improvement measures if your building(s) is consistently energy intensive. Refer to Mandatory Energy Improvement Regime for more information.

Minimum Environmental Sustainability Standard

From 2 January 2017 onwards, the Building Control (Environmental Sustainability Measures for Existing Building) (Amendment) Regulations 2016 will apply to all buildings that:

• Have a GFA greater than 5,000m²
• Install or replace the building cooling system

These buildings are excluded from the requirement:

• Any industrial building
• Any railway premises, port services and facilities or airport services and facilities
• Any religious buildings
• Any data centres
• Any utility buildings
• Any residential building, excluding serviced apartments

Mandatory periodic energy audits

Mandatory periodic energy audits ensure that cooling systems continue to operate efficiently throughout a building’s lifespan, allowing building owners to continuously reap energy saving benefits.

Find out more about the submission procedure for periodic energy audits.

Submission requirements

Prior to installing or replacing a chiller, Buildings owners must:

• Meet the pre-requisite requirements as specified in the Code on Environmental Sustainability Measures for Existing buildings
• Meet any other requirements specified in the code

Additionally, building owners must submit to BCA for approval:

• A design application form for the building including other specified documents before installing or replacing of chillers (major energy-use change)
• An as-built application form for the building including other specified documents after completing the installation of chillers

Note: A professional mechanical engineer must ensure that the overall building design meets the requirements specified in the Code, taking into the account the chiller upgrade and other energy improvement works. The major energy-use change must be completed within 3 years from the date BCA approves the design application.

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