Building energy management: How does it benefit you?
It is one of the existing policies to combat climate change, such as the development of renewable energy and less polluting transport. In today's post, we are going to talk about the importance of the energy efficiency of buildings.
We highly value the importance of Energy Efficiency and we know the growing need to analyze and monitor our environment to make the processes that take place in the city more efficient. We are aware of the unstoppable trend that society experiences of residing in cities, which marks a new reality that must be faced in all areas.
Building Energy Management - Almost Zero Consumption:
The buildings are an important element in a city, are responsible for 30% of final energy consumption and a third of CO2 emissions. If we want to make our cities smart, why not the buildings we inhabit? Currently, the energy consumption of buildings in Spain reaches 36% of the total consumption of the country, there is no adequate energy management and the life cycle of a building is not analyzed either. Therefore, there is an urgent need to reverse this trend, which is why the issue of energy efficiency and also the energy rehabilitation of buildings becomes more relevant.
The building sector accounts for 40% of energy consumption all around the world. This consumption is mainly due to heating and lighting systems in both tertiary and residential buildings. Therefore, it is important that buildings take into account the fundamental role played by energy efficiency solutions.
To fulfill the objectives, countries have been strategising in the Building Sector aims to mobilize investments in the renovation of buildings to improve energy performance.
Some of the actions highlighted by the Residential Commission to achieve the energy-saving and efficiency objectives are:
- Preparation by member countries of an energy efficiency plan every 3 years.
- Carrying out energy audits every 4 years in the facilities of large companies.
- Compliance with "Almost Zero Consumption" of new buildings before 2020.
According to the new regulatio, by 2020 new buildings must have almost zero energy consumption.
What is a Smart Building or Smart Building?
It is defined as a building with a very high level of energy efficiency, where the almost zero or very low amount of energy required should be largely covered by energy from renewable sources, including energy from renewable sources produced locally or in the environment.
To fulfill this, the essential requirements are the installation of renewable energies, the limitation of demand and high energy efficiency in the facilities.
A great example of energy efficiency: The La Vela building
The La Vela financial building is located in the Las Tablas, in Madrid, and is built according to the LEED Gold sustainability criteria, becoming the new example of energy efficiency. Furthermore, it is the largest building in Europe lit with LED lights.
The elliptical tower is located in the center of a circular plaza 100 meters in diameter, has 19 floors distributed in its 93 meters high and is surrounded by 7 buildings of three heights that bear the names of the different continents. The streets surrounding the buildings are named after seas and oceans. Its facade is glazed on its two flat faces of 49,000 square meters, which reduces energy consumption.
In terms of energy-saving and sustainability, it has a system that allows rainwater to be collected to be reused for irrigation.
Its lighting by means of LEDs means an energy saving of 40%, and it also has a blind management system that is regulated according to natural light, allowing energy savings of 60%.
