The Building Ministers’ Forum (BMF) met in Hobart on February 8 to discuss issues ranging from safety to energy efficiency. The BMF oversees policy and regulatory issues affecting Australia’s building and construction industries. It is made up of federal and state and territory government ministers who have responsibility for building and construction. It was thought […]
The NCC (National Construction Code) 2019 Preview has been released. Versions of all three volumes and the guide to volume one are now available to download as PDFs. The NCC sets the minimum acceptable standards for all new construction work in Australia. Since 2005, it has included provisions in Section J for energy efficiency, including […]
As reported last month, the Australian government is changing energy efficiency regulations for air conditioners up to 65kW in capacity. A draft version of the new “determination” (the instrument that regulates energy efficiency) is now available, and more details of the changes have been confirmed. The first major change is the introduction of a more […]
Households and small businesses in New South Wales could receive discounts of up to $1,000 when they install an energy efficient air conditioning unit. The program is part of the Climate Change Fund initiative, and is designed to encourage people to buy high-efficiency units. It was announced by Premier Gladys Berejiklian in September 2017 as part […]
The Australian Building Codes Board (ABCB) has outlined some key changes to the National Construction Code (NCC) 2019. The NCC sets the minimal requirements in the design, construction, performance and livability of new buildings (and new building work in existing buildings) throughout Australia. AIRAH’s Executive Manager – Government Relations and Technical Services, Phil Wilikinson, F.AIRAH, recommends the […]
The Better Building Partnership (BBP) has launched the Expand the Band campaign to revise outdated set-points and deadband temperatures in Australian office buildings. The campaign offers building owners a simple and extremely low-cost way of reducing energy costs and emissions. Currently, most commercial leases specify a set-point temperature of 22°C. This is based on 1950s […]
Average air conditioning efficiencies could double by 2040, according to a new report from the International Energy Agency (IEA). The catch is that for this to be achieved, worldwide adoption of all best available technologies would need to take place. The report, Energy Efficiency 2018, suggests there is considerable potential for the energy consumption attributed […]
The Department of the Environment and Energy is seeking key stakeholders to help establish minimum energy performance standards (MEPS) for industrial equipment. This will cover industrial and commercial-scale pumps, boilers and air compressors in Australia and New Zealand. Energy efficiency requirements are already in place for a wide range of products and tools under the Greenhouse […]
The ARBS Education and Research Foundation has released the results of a comparative study conducted on HVAC systems in commercial buildings. The research and the resulting report – touted as a world first on air distribution systems – was conducted in Sydney by Team Catalyst. “There are few surprises for experienced HVAC engineers who understand […]
That was the message from Mike Dodd, senior policy officer at the Australian Building Codes Board (ABCB), at the recent Future of HVAC Conference. He presented an update on the changes to Section J of Volume 1 of the National Construction Code (NCC), which will be published in February 2019 and come into effect in […]