Continuing the important conversation around decarbonisation in Glasgow

A diverse range of industry leaders contributed their perspectives, including representatives from City Property (Glasgow) LLP, DAR-e-me Consulting Engineers Ltd, Fife Council, Goodson Associates, Hardies, hub South West, hub West Scotland, Infrastructure Managers Limited, McLaughlin & Harvey, Morgan Sindall Construction Infrastructure Ltd, Morrison Construction, Renfrewshire Council, Scottish Futures Trust, The City of Edinburgh Council, Tilbury Douglas, West Lothian Council and Woolgar Hunter.

To set the scene, director and head of sustainability, Robert Hopkins, discusses the newly launched UK Net Zero Carbon Building Standard Pilot which enables industry to robustly prove their built assets are net zero carbon and in line with our nation’s climate targets. Attendees agreed that the new standard is vital in addressing the challenges faced across the industry when approaching decarbonisation efforts.

Read on for more.

The discussion revealed important methodologies that can drive the transition to sustainable building practices. A fabric-first approach, focusing on airtightness and insulation, produces significant energy savings. This method, especially in retrofitting projects, is a simple yet powerful way to enhance building performance and reduce energy consumption. Highlighted was the benefits of using Passivhaus tools like the Passive House Planning Package (PHPP) to guide sustainable building practices.

Our retrofit toolkit can be used on an individual building basis or scaled up to consider multiple assets across an entire estate. This will help you choose which interventions would be most beneficial to you using a balance of capital cost, energy savings, payback, embodied carbon and more.

If you’d like to see our retrofit toolkit in action, get in touch.

When planning decarbonisation efforts, focusing on individual buildings may not always deliver the most effective results. The roundtable stressed the importance of evaluating entire estates to prioritise interventions where the greatest financial and environmental returns can be realised.

Some older or historically significant buildings may be expensive to retrofit and may not achieve the same level of energy efficiency as newer structures. One participant noted, in some cases, the older buildings might not be the focus for deep retrofitting because they cannot easily be upgraded to net zero standards.

Instead, decarbonisation efforts could be concentrated on newer buildings where the financial returns would be more significant, offsetting the energy consumption of less efficient buildings. This strategic approach helps ensure that limited resources are used effectively by targeting areas where they will have the greatest impact, both in terms of energy savings and financial returns.

Our conversation underscored the role of behavioural change in building performance. We touched upon the ‘soft landings’ approach and how this is much more than just simply handing over a completed building. It involves a structured handover period, where occupants, whether they are building managers or everyday users, are trained to understand the new energy systems and how their actions impact overall efficiency.

Everyone agreed was the need to bridge the gap between design intent and actual performance, ensuring that energy-saving features are used to their full potential.

Securing funding remains a challenge, but collaboration between public and private sectors is key to driving decarbonisation projects forward. Participants discussed the importance of creating funding models that encourage private investment while aligning with public sector sustainability goals. This cooperation is essential to unlocking the financial resources needed for large-scale decarbonisation.

A new initiative mentioned was the launch of the Climate Intelligence Unit at the Edinburgh Centre for Carbon Innovation (ECCI). This Unit will provide vital data to local authorities, helping them visualise and assess the viability of different decarbonisation strategies, including building retrofits, district heating networks and transportation solutions. By offering a data-driven approach, the unit supports both public and private sectors in making informed investment decisions, ensuring projects are financially viable while meeting long-term sustainability targets.

We extend our thanks to our attendees who once again engaged in a thought-provoking discussion and look forward to inviting you back for further discussions, with a focus on how we can achieve decarbonisation and what a ‘Healthier Building’ truly means.

To learn more about how we are achieving decarbonisation through retrofit, visit our perspectives page here.

For more information about the standard, you can register for the webinar on 31st October, where you can learn more and engage directly with the Technical Steering Group here.