Projects using Scottish Regulations

What is written here applies only to projects using Scottish 2022 Regulations.

You should read the NCM modelling guide for Scotland and be familiar with it.

For Scotland, Glasgow weather data must be used (despite the fact that Edinburgh weather data also exists, Glasgow weather data must always be used, even for buildings in Edinburgh itself).

Notional PV area

For full details, see sections 94-99 of the National Calculation Methodology (NCM) Modelling Guide for Non-Domestic Buildings in Scotland.

The base value for the area of PV in the Notional building is equal to 15% of the building’s gross internal area, or 30% of the building’s foundation area, whichever value is smaller. It is therefore very important to ensure that the correct foundation area is entered into the studio as, e.g., incorrectly leaving the number of storeys as 1 will have a large impact on the Notional building’s performance.

Note that as the Notional PV area is proportional to building’s gross internal area or foundation area, and not its roof area, it is possible for the Notional PV area to exceed the building roof area.

PV area is also proportional to the heat DEMAND which is met by HEAT PUMPS in the ACTUAL building. Note that the relevant result is DEMAND, not consumption, or floor area served, or CO2 emissions, or primary energy, etc. Any heat source which has the “heat pump” checkbox ticked in the studio is counted as a heat pump, and all other sources are not counted as heat pumps; therefore ensure that heat sources are marked correctly. Note that this is not just for heating-only heat pumps; VRFs and other systems where heat pumps provide both heating and cooling should be marked as heat pumps.

A building whose heating demand is entirely met by heat pumps will have no PV in the Notional. All other buildings, including ones partially served by heat pump heating, will have some PV in the Notional building.

Renewables Generation

For the Section 6 document (BRUKL PDF), electricity generation from renewables is limited to the building’s electrical demand (see sections 102 and 146 of the NCM guide for full details).

Total grid displaced electricity cannot exceed the building’s electrical demand (includes all demands using grid supplied electricity - equipment, lights, fans and pumps, cooling, may include heating). Any excess generation is lost. This calculation is made on a month-by-month basis. The full generation value is shown on the document in the “Energy Production by Technology” section, but the Displaced Electricity value shows the generation after the limit has been applied. It is the limited value which is used in the calculation of building emissions and primary energy.

NB: The generation limit does not apply to the EPC. It is therefore possible for a building to have a different BER for the EPC and the Section 6 document.

Section 63 Action Plan

A Section 63 Action Plan PDF will be generated for all studio runs which create a Section 6 or Scottish EPC document. If the Action Plan is not required for your project, simply ignore it.

Results for the Prescriptive building (which can be generated in Tas through a separate studio project) can be entered on the BRUKL/EPC Information page of the studio. These values will be compared to the results of the current run to generate the target emission and energy savings on the action plan document.

Users should follow official guidance to determine whether action plan measures should be triggered. The process is semi-automated by the studio - see below.

  • Central time heating control: Triggered if BOTH “incomplete heating controls” checkbox AND “boiler over 15 years old” checkbox are ticked in the studio.

  • Lighting controls: Triggered if there are NO areas in the building with ANY form of photocell control or automatic presence detection.

  • Draught-stripping windows and doors: Triggered if the building air permeability is MORE THAN 14 m3/h.m2.

  • Hot water storage insulation: Triggered if “water tank insulation required” checkbox is ticked in the studio. This measure depends on tank losses - consult official guidance.

  • Lamp replacement: Triggered if the lamp type “Tungsten and Halogen” is used for ANY zones on the Lighting Control page of the studio.

  • Boiler replacement: Triggered if the “boiler over 15 years old” checkbox is ticked in the studio.

  • Roof insulation: Triggered if the maximum roof U-value is MORE THAN 1.0 W/m2.K, AND the checkbox “pitched roof space is accessible” is ticked. Note that accessible roof spaces under a flat (horizontal) roof should NOT trigger this measure, so only tick the box for an accessible roof space under a pitched roof with a high U-value.