NRG Experts

Renewable Energy for the layman

2008-10-21T08:30:00.001+01:00

I have finally had a chance to catch up with James May's Big Ideas programme about Power to the People and its rather good.

James covers, amongst other things:

Solar energy
Wind energy
Tidal energy
Nuclear fusion
Space elevators (!) negating the need for huge rockets
Solar towers (in the Spanish countryside)
Alternative fuel sources like solar furnaces to assist production

It actually covers a huge amount of ground in 60 minutes and makes very good watching- go and find out for yourself!

I had covered some of the content that appears in previous blog postings if you are interested in reading my views!

August 01, 2008 - Wave energy in action - the Moores Law analogy
July 26, 2008 - The latest green technology developments
July 21, 2008 - Largest onshore windfarm in Europe to be built

The Tour of Britain cycled past my office!

2008-10-20T07:00:00.001+01:00

Yes I know this is a bit late since the race went past a few weeks ago now, but I just stumbled across a couple of photos and thought I would indulge myself in another cycling-related blog posting following my highly regarded and now infamous Pedalling to boil a kettle for a cuppa tea! article some 6 months ago which drew rave reviews only from the insects that seem to be attracted to my desk!

Anyway, energy efficiency and the bicycle are good friends you know. The bicycle is the most energy efficient way for humans to move about, and arguably before we had them, movement was slow and frequently the next village was the limit of many peoples adventures.

The Greater Manchester Cycling Campaign ran a trial last month, comparing bicycle, bus, car and train from Heaton Chapel to Manchester City Centre to find out which means of transport is cheapest, easiest, fastest and healthiest over an average commuting distance. In a nutshell what did the experiment show:

Fastest- bicycle
Cheapest- bicycle
Greenest- bicycle

Code for Sustainable Homes

Yes indeed, even bicycles creep into this document! You score well for providing space to store bicycles. I'll remember that when I start thinking about our new build over the next 6 months. Think I'll prefer a separate outbuilding for my bike collection though, and it would prove less irritating to the rest of the family I suspect!

Anyway, my tip for the day- buy a bike, and go pedalling!

Government commits UK to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050

2008-10-19T07:00:00.001+01:00

Amazing really, you wait for an adult conversation with a Government minister and are surprised when you actually get one. Its clear that Ed Miliband means business at the new DECC, that's the Department of Energy and Climate Change which was established in the latest reshuffle which also delivered us Margaret Beckett as Housing Minister of course.

To get the ball rolling, the government has actually increased its commitment to cut CO2 emissions by 80% by 2050 rather than the previous figure of 60% that was being pushed about. Shipping and aviation are proving more tricky to measure and manage and will be examined in 5-yearly Carbon audits.

Mr Miliband told MPs the government accepted all the recommendations of the report from Lord Turner's Committee on Climate Change. Although the full report from the Committee on Climate Change won't be published until 1 December, you can see the published recommendations.

In order to meet this 80% reduction- 5 specific areas of recommendation are made- energy assessors will be very interested in the first one, and perhaps an interest in the fourth- I certainly am!

1. Energy efficiency improvement in buildings and industry (e.g. loft and cavity wall insulation, use of more efficient appliances, turning appliances off and using less air conditioning), which will be particularly important for reducing emissions in the period to 2020.

2. Decarbonisation of the power sector, starting now and continuing through the 2020s, based on replacing existing conventional fossil fuel fired plant with renewable technologies (e.g. wind, tidal), nuclear new build and CCS.

3. Transport sector decarbonisation, first through improving fuel efficiency of conventional engines and increased use of sustainable first generation biofuels, with progressive introduction of new technologies such as electric cars, plug in hybrids and hydrogen vehicles, and second generation biofuels.

4. Heat sector decarbonisation through increased use of biomass in boilers and CHP, air exchange and ground source heat pumps, and modern electric storage heating.

5. Decarbonisation of industry through the introduction of new technologies such as CCS in cement, iron and steel.

So simple then! Well yes actually, if politicians are put under pressure from the public and the lobby groups then the above is entirely possible. It is encouraging that even with financial meltdown now well underway, the EU have not allowed some countries to waive the short-term commitment to carbon reduction. Of course there are headaches ahead like dealing with China and the USA but every flood starts with a trickle.

Solar heating in 7.5 million UK homes.

The Department for Energy & Climate Change now have a Director of Heat, Hergen Haye, who announced at this weeks Solar Trade Association’s seminar that the Government would like to see seven and half million homes with solar heating in place within the next 12 years. With a current stock of just 100,000 houses with installed systems that's a new installation rate of around 12,000 systems every single week, its a third of all UK houses fitted with solar heating. As we know new build starts have dropped dramatically in this credit crunch but even at full speed, 200,000 new dwelling per year may just be possible, and if the Code for Sustainable Homes can be beefed up and mandatory introduction dates brought forward in each region, then perhaps a contribution to the overall 7 million target can be made.

A positive comment made by Mr Haye was that 160,000 new jobs will be created with a 100billion or more investment opportunities- clearly someone is going to make money saving the Earth. Its certainly an exciting target for all those in the solar energy business!

This Autumn the Government will publish a consultation on the wider heat policy which will lead to a definitive Heat Strategy in 2009. One note of caution- making different elements of heat policy compatible with other Government objectives - such as security of supply, competitiveness, fuel poverty - will present a significant challenge.

The great British public- just so knowledgeable about property!!

2008-10-18T07:30:00.000+01:00

Spotted this little gem of a readers letter in the Shropshire Star entitled Light bulb moment for home energy bid.

Sadly this is all too common, the general public think they know about property, and have built their encyclopedic knowledge by sitting in a pub or watching Kirstie and Phil on television. In what is a very short letter, two classics appear:

It is a known fact that windows and doors are the most vulnerable area for heat loss in any property, so much so that the industry has put a lot of time, money and research in to this problem.

Er, perhaps the gentlemans pub didn't have a roof then? Maybe he lives in a skip?

If so, forget costly replacement of those draughty old windows and just change the light bulbs. This will reflect so much better on the certificate.

I would kindly advise the gentleman to spend a few moments reading about payback periods. Not a mention of loft of wall insulation, just an overwhelming interest in his windows. Yes, shiny new windows may add value to your property but there are so many other ways to improve the energy efficiency of the property!

Out of the IDEA frying pan and into the fire

2008-10-17T08:00:00.004+01:00

How do they manage it? Like the voyage of the Titanic, which was ultimately doomed to fail, the Institute of Domestic Energy Assessors have managed to ruffle yet more feathers in the HIP/EPC community. In its 15 month existance has any other company managed to cause such a stir? Yes its boring, and yes its like a car crash- you know you should not rubber-neck at it as you go past, but sometimes you just cannot help yourself!

Like the Delboy and Rodney of the DEA world, the IDEA 'management team' flounder helplessly round this industry in their batman and robin outfits trying to find more ways to make money.

IDEA have only recently recovered from the calamitous slip-up when the CEO/Chairman/Lobbyist (he cannot make his mind up which self-appointed title he wakes up with some days!) was published in the national press as stating that EPCs could be sourced for 30 pounds, or even less for high volume.

IDEA to become a circus Act?

Albeit I don't think Barnum and Bailey give circus lessons anymore, this Telegraph article let down all those IDEA members that have had such a tough financial time since entering this industry and regard such low fee levels as disgusting. Read the full article in the Telegraph Property Club.

I have covered many of the problems in previous postings so do not propose to rake over old ground, you can see my views here:

April 23rd 2008 Steering Group in mass exodus from IDEA, is IDEA in trouble?
May 11th 2008 17 more ways IDEA earn money- what about 17 positive things for members?
July 23rd 2008 EPC fees are at 30 pounds and we have 12,000 DEAs apparently!
August 3rd 2008 IDEA issues gagging orders to Committee candidates

It was not that long ago when IDEA announced a tie up with ECMK for accreditation. IDEA are supposed to be an Institute, they certainly do not behave like one. By agreeing deals that provide income into the IDEA coffers in the way of referral fees every time an EPC is lodged through ECMK all that has been achieved is to put the nose out of joint of other accreditation schemes. The deal with ECMK was not assessed in terms of what was good for members, there is no paper trail of the process by which each accreditation scheme was assessed and certainly no vote was taken by those delegated with responsibility for such matters!

IDEA split from the Pack Provider partner Hip2Go

Yes, last week IDEA announced they would now set-up a panel of pack providers which put their 'exclusive' relationship with Hip2Go into jeopardy. Hip2Go did indeed walk away at the start of this week, but in scenes reminiscent of when ECMK emailed all the HES candidates trying to poach them as they got moved to complete their training with Quidos, Hip2Go have only gone and done the same thing! Their Operations Manager emailed those DEA/HIs who have been using the Hip2Go solution telling them that they can indeed keep working together- even keeping the same login details- and with the extra carrot of further fee reductions. It was claimed to be an amicable split! Given I know the strong characters involved, I would wager that behind closed doors, amicable would not be the description being used!

Its become a volume game and a war of attrition- no-one likes to lose a relationship or volume of work. Perhaps the writing was on the wall when IDEA told Hip2Go they were unhappy with the speed of the searches being carried out earlier this year? Certainly doesn't help the Hip2Go ambition for continual expansion with products like the recently launched Landlords pack. Still, given the chaotic behaviour of Batman and Robin, I think its obvious who has come out second best, after all, look who is using the IDEA HIP web address at HipIDEA.net (which currently shows the Hip4DEA branding, username and password), yep, its only Hip2Go! Now if only IDEA had tried to retain and attract the right sort of people to guide it past these fundamental errors it might not be sending traffic to the 'opposition' eh? Maybe Batman and Robin should head back to the Batcave and get their heads round IDEA 2.0? Hip2Go aren't silly though, in fact they acted as the legal sounding board when Batman and Robin were busy kicking people off the Steering Group and suspending members willy-nilly leaving themselves wide open morally and legally.

So what next for IDEA?

(Other than global domination of course, that's a shoe-in!) OK, well they now wish to set-up a panel of pack providers, no doubt all competing for the work of the DEAs- so what we have is no more than a reverse-auction. Will IDEA publish figures about turnaround times on searches, how quick the DEA/HIs get paid when monies are owed? Does not seem very likely when IDEA continue to mislead people about how many members it has- the website is claiming 1961 members when nothing could be further from the truth. Membership fees were due many months ago now, and the take up is a small fraction of the 1961 number.

IDEA actually dislike me.

Yes, sadly its true. They spent a great deal of time last week clowning around trying to get me banned from speaking at the NHER/SAVA National Conference next week. Petty stuff really but with serious overtones of course. IDEA has always had this arrogant habit of trying to stop anyone saying anything that might not be on IDEA message including the suspension of people from IDEA without reason, secretive non-disclosure agreements completely inappropriate in what should be a democratic member-led Institute, the failure to provide basic documents such as a Constitution to folk who are considering joining IDEA and so on. Even steering group members got kicked out for being unhappy at the opaque or non-existant explanations/answers given. The word clown got mentioned many many times!

They really do need focus on what they need to be doing, which is learning how to operate as an Institute. I cannot see that day coming with the current Batman and Robin team in place, but miracles do happen apparently!

I'd like to discuss these problems with IDEA but sadly all the Batmen and all the Robins have been forced to sign a gagging order which means that none are legally allowed to comment for the next 3 years. Nice touch, there are dictators who would admire that masterstroke of control.

The great franchise rip-off

2008-10-16T08:30:00.000+01:00

Yes, hark back if you will to the early days of the DEA/HI and the momentum we had towards the roll-out of HIPs.

Remember all those get-rich franchise schemes? Quite a few to choose from as I recall, but not many left right now are there?

Who sold regions, territories, areas with the promise of a nice stream of work if you paid up and bought-in to their, and hopefully for them, your, dream? Off the tip of the tongue I can think of Hipstar, Habitus and 1stForHips but then it seems rude to exclude panels that want DEA/HIs to pay for the privilege of joining them with no guarantee of work of course. So lets add Gas-Elec to the list then. And lastly what about all these websites popping up almost weekly now which encourage DEA/HIs to pay to have their names listed- and pay extra if you want top-billing etc.

Honestly, its just pathetic!

Hipstar- gone
Habitus- gone
Others- all over the place really!

Where to turn?

So if you are new to the industry and someone asks you to pay for something, and it looks even the slightest bit fishy, please do not part with your cash! Post the topic and your thoughts on the Home Inspector Forum and get the opinions from around the country of industry folk who have been around for a long time, and have come across almost all the rogue companies in one guise or another.

Fancy reading the sad story about one franchisee who has gone down to the tune of 14,000 pounds. Its not pretty but he was asking for legal advice here on the UK Business Forum.

Politicians - why the HIP/EPC roll-out was a sham

2008-10-15T08:30:00.002+01:00

So how is it that the HIP and EPC roll-out have been such a shambles? Well there are of course many reasons, but certainly when their have been more baton changes than the Olympic Torch relay, then with a boss never in post for longer than the time it takes to settle in, the day-to-day role of delivering policy just becomes something left to civil servants and consultants to exploit for their own ends. This inevitably involves horse-trading for the civil servants who have inter-department rivalry to deal with, whereas at least the consultants are more obvious, they are in it for the money. Pure fee-earning for helping the civil servants to deliver the tasks they have been given.

A very brief history of HIPs

A proposal to address the problem of gazumping was first made in the 1997 Labour Party manifesto. Research after the election revealed that around 28% of sales fell before exchange of contracts, with gazumping occurring in fewer than 2% of sales. The emphasis subsequently moved to the benefits of increased speed, transparency and consumer friendliness.

Home Information Packs were announced in the Queen's Speech in November 2003.

Implementation of HIPs got delayed until finally a phased roll-out in the second half of 2007 went ahead.

and a brief history of Energy Performance Certificates

EPCs are inherently linked to the Directive on the energy performance of buildings (EPBD)2002/91/EC of 16 December 2002. The Directive came into force on 4th January 2003 and had to be implemented by the EU Member States at the latest on 4 January 2006. Only for 2 requirements (certifications and inspections), could member states, because of lack of qualified and/or accredited experts, have an additional period of three years (before January 2009) to apply fully. Clearly in this case, England and Wales chose to delay the roll-out of EPCs as they were considered to be an inherent part of the HIPs and it was HIPs themselves that were, and still are, politically difficult territory for the existing Government.

So the point to draw from the above is that we have had quite some years to prepare the country for HIPs and EPCs. Now lets take a look at who has been charged with delivering government policy on housing...

Housing Ministers since Labour got elected in May 1997

May 97 - Aug 99 Hilary Armstrong
Aug 99 - Jun 01 Nick Raynsford
Jun 01 - May 02 Lord Falconer
May 02 - Jun 03 Lord Rooker
Jun 03 - May 05 Keith Hill
May 05 - Jan 08 Yvette Cooper (with Ruth Kelly pretending to show ownership)
Jan 08 - Oct 08 Caroline Flint
Oct 08 - present Margaret Beckett

Well thats quite a line-up! No wonder HIPs and EPCs have gone badly, no-one ever got to grips with the delivery of the policy. Well thats not quite true, hats off to Michael Gove who, of all the shadow Housing Ministers, was the most effective at continuously being a thorn in the side of Government Ministers.

Display Energy Certificates in October- have you seen any?

2008-10-14T08:30:00.002+01:00

I found an article from Michael Willoughby demonstrating just how farcial the situation is regarding Display Energy Certificates quite hilarious.

In Waste of energy? The search for Display Energy Certificates it tells the story of Michaels recentwonderings around London in the desperate search of a Display Energy Certificate which of course should be on the wall of all public buildings by now.

So he visited Tate Modern and didn't find one!
Shakespeares Globe theatre? Nope, not there either!
The Underground? Nope!

So I think you get the hint, DECs so far are yet another failure in the rollout of the EPBD and this is yet another example of how we have had plenty of time to get it right. Even so, we have watered down the regulations, and still do not have enough assessors available to carry out the work!

A few examples of what some buildings are scoring:

10 Downing Street: D (657 tonnes of CO2/year )
HM Treasury: E (4,122 )
Natural History Museum: E (10,026)
City Hall, London: E (2,255)
Defra head office: E (1,322)
Palace of Westminster: G (11,983 )
Portcullis House: G (2,750)
Bank of England: G (9,373)
Imperial War Museum, London: G (3,664)
Imperial War Museum, North: G (1,396)

and if you are still not sure about the EPBD- well I stumbled across this handy little reminder!

RIBA Stirling Prize 2008 - Accordia is the shock winner

2008-10-13T08:30:00.003+01:00

Ok, so I don't normally venture this far into creativity and culture on the blog, but I do read my Architects Journals when they arrive on my desk, I thoroughly enjoyed the amazing pictures and the article covering the development work at my alma mater Nottingham University.

So we have Accordia announced as the winner of the Stirling Prize, and a shock winner it was too, an outside with the bookies, unconventional as it was a series of residential buildings rather than one bold statement.

The judges said of Accordia: 'This is high-density housing at its very best, demonstrating that volume housebuilders can deliver high-quality architecture and that as a result they can improve their own bottom line.

'The whole scheme is about relationships: between architect and developer/contractor/client; between three very different firms of architects; and between private and public external spaces, providing a new model for outside-inside life with interior rooftop spaces, internal courtyards and large semi-public community gardens.'

So it can be done, yes it needs supportive local authorities, yes it needs risk-taking design and a fresh approach to tackle the stifled attitude to house-building we seem to suffer from, but its clear that modern high-density housing projects do not need to look like something from the other side of the Iron Curtain, that can be interesting, they can be bold, they can even be inviting!

So are you interesting in buying an ultra-modern and award winning home? Well they are not cheap, so I hope you sold your shares and sold off that second hand stuff on ebay some months ago because availability right now include 4 bedroom townhouses at 899,950 but for those on a more meagre budget there are still a couple of 1 bedroom apartments, both sporting a balcony of course, from 245,950. Incredibly 80-85% of the properties on the sales sheet are already under offer or have completed. Strikes me there is still the money in Cambridge there has always been, but with the rise of the Science and Technology Parks, and hence IPOs and outside investment, there is also plenty of new money in Cambridge too- and best of luck to it!

Best of the rest?
Certainly it was up against stiff competition. My favourite was actually the redevelopment of Bijlmer Station (pictured right) which has become the trigger for wider regeneration in that area of Amsterdam.

I shall keep my closely guarded interest in culture under wraps for another year- it is back to the daily grind of HIPs and EPCs for me!

What would you pay for a Home Condition Report?

2008-10-12T19:24:00.007+01:00

Can you even remember what Home Condition Reports are?

Now just imagine if RICS had been running the show, sorting out pricing, quality, auditing, standard of individuals allowed to do this sort of work and so on. No rogue training providers, no rogue accreditation schemes, no rogue/missing auditors, no excuses- well not many anyway. Oh and to finish off, a credible and determined press-savvy bunch of communicators taken seriously by the property industry.

Well astonishingly in Scotland, this is exactly what IS happening! Yep, the Scottish Single Survey is being introduced on 4 January 2009 and is mandatory for all new properties being marketed- which all sounds a little bit familiar.

Are they a real fee-earner? You bet, see the RICS Scotland press release where they explain that the survey itself will cost 500-700 which is approximately 100 above a normal level 2 survey, but they are of course carrying out the EPC for that 100 pounds!

Its remarkable stuff and frankly it makes me want to move north, if they'd have me.

In fact the single survey is only part of the Home Report, an alternative documents to the Home Information Pack and it will comprise three elements, with the first two carried out by a chartered surveyor who must by law be a member of RICS Scotland

1. A single survey showing the condition of the property and a valuation

2. An energy report showing how green the property is, providing an EPC (energy performance certificate) which will rate the property from A - very good, down to E. similar to the certificates found on white goods.

3. A property questionnaire, completed by the seller or the sellers agent detailing such things as council tax band, parking, disabled access, and whether the property has cable or satellite.

and looky here, its even got backing the Chair of the Scottish Consumer Council (SCC) who commented

The fee for a Home Report is a small price to pay for peace of mind when buyers are making the biggest purchase of their lives. At the moment most of us buy our home on the basis of very limited information, and many people end up paying out for unexpected repairs after they buy. Now they will have much more detailed information before they make an offer, and while sellers will pay for it, they will benefit as buyers. First-time buyers who are struggling to get onto the property ladder will benefit most of all, as they will pay nothing for their Home Report.

and it will come as no surprise to see the the Survey element looks rather like the Home Condition Report! Take a look, recognise those 1-3 ratings? Marvellous stuff indeed, pity the English and Welsh couldn't manage the proverbial buffet in the brewery really, God help the Olympic construction projects!

Well there you have it, another good opportunity to improve the homebuying process in England and Wales gone begging, so we can still look forward to 12 weeks exchanges, gazumping owing to survey findings which aren't declared until the moment of exchange and of course the best that CML, NAEA and the Law Society, and, to be fair, RICS, are saying is: lets go back the drawing board.

Not until you have put some credible ideas in the public domain people. I haven't seen a single conveyancer or solicitor reduce their prices owing to the availability of searches in HIPs, so lets at least have some of this debate in public, before finessing it in private.

Proper stakeholders, proper budgets, proper buy-in and commitment to change. Only then will we see action and progress. In the meantime it is no wonder the professional bodies hate Government-imposed regulation since its transparent its introduced in a haphazard and catastrophic way.

The wider point is, are industry going to grab this opportunity by the balls, or do we have to rely on future Governments to kick the housebuying process into shape? I know what I would prefer!

A final side-swipe at this shambles in England and Wales- know how hard it is to make sense of the CLG website? A search function that doesn't work- documents that move about, numbers that no-one updates and so on? Well do try the Scottish version of the Home Report website. Easy to navigate, easy downloads in one format. Not hard to do properly is it- unless you are CLG relying on half-wit consultants of course!!

Are estate agents ready for yet another threat of a HIP related fine?

2008-10-10T08:30:00.008+01:00

Are you missing your Property Information Questionnaire (PIQ)?

So are agents going to welcome the Property Information Questionnaire(PIQ) with open arms? You bet they won't, 95% of them have never heard of it, but word is now out courtesy of a reply to a Parliamentary Question that agents can look forward to being fined if the PIQ is missing or incomplete!

In a written answer to this Parliamentary question

what penalties may be imposed upon a householder not completing, in whole or in part, information on a Property Information Questionnaire on a home information pack and then marketing a property.

Iain Wright said
The Home Information Pack Regulations provide that the person responsible for marketing the property must ensure that a valid pack is provided to potential buyers. This would include ensuring a completed PIQ has been included in the HIP. In the vast majority of cases the responsible person will be the seller's estate agent.

The local weights and measures authority has the power to issue a penalty charge notice of 200 pounds on the responsible person for a breach of the HIP duties.
How kind! So thats another potential fine to be avoided by agents, who at this time, have no idea this is on the agenda and going to arrive as their responsibility very very soon! We shall be briefing the agents we work with and keeping them informed as the countdown to PIQ day starts. This additional paperwork will be the final nail in the coffin to disorganised and incompetent pack providers who have managed to wing it so far without investing in the right people and technology to make the process repeatible and to an appropriate high standard.

Does anyone actually remember the Home Condition Report?

Sound familiar anyone? Well apparently CLG run a Stakeholder Panel on Home Buying and Selling and they are going to issue some proposals in the Autumn about a condition report within the HIP. Apologies if I sound a touch cynical but being over 8 grand down for a HI qualification that has no value means that I find any CLG chatter about HCRs of absolutely no value or interest. Far more likely that RICS will open the door to allow HIs a route to a real career. I might not agree with everything RICS says or does, as it also the case with the NAEA, but they are at least consistent in their view and don't give out mixed or incoherent messages which is what we have had all too often from the politicians and CLG.

Scrapping HIPs?

And finally, with plenty of chatter about whether the Tories will scrap HIPs assuming they win the next election, which of course they will, Grant Shapps (Con) fired in the old chestnut:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will use her powers under section 162 of the Housing Act 2004 to suspend the requirement to product a home information pack to market a property.

and do stop panicking at the back there, as Iain Wright Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Hartlepool, Labour said:

We have no plans to suspend Home Information Packs.

So Iain Wright keeps us in check once again.

One other industry 'gentleman' from Hartlepool has been rabble-rousing again this week, trying to drag my name through the mud. He'll keep trying, sadly its all he has got left to do now. Most fortunate for him that I am not troubled enough to stick him in a world of pain by sharing a few truths with a wider audience. Appears to be quite a few stones in a standard Hartlepool glass house!

Can Display Energy Certificates really work?

2008-10-09T07:44:00.006+01:00

Other than the fact the introduction of Display Energy Certificates have been watered down twice so far (date slippage and the use of one DEC per group of buildings rather than per building), and the fact that I don't feel the data collection is detailed enough to produce a result that is helpful enough to the occupier it could just be that folk are beginning to understand what this energy saving business is all about!

Take this article in Bradford's Telegraph and Argus by Ben Barnett entitled Museum's energy-efficiency 'among the worst' which goes on to state that not only is the National Media Museum scoring a G rating but 1 in 4 of all buildings assessed so far has scored either a F or G rating, the worst categories for energy efficiency.

This particular building spent 189,807.42 on energy bills in 2007-08, roughly 26p per visitor, Museum director Colin Philpott said:

We are currently implementing a number of energy-saving measures and investigating further energy-saving techniques which we hope to have in place in the short to medium term. The museum is proactive in implementing a number of energy-saving measures including installing voltage optimisation, which should reduce its electricity consumption by ten to 15 per cent. Energy-saving options are being investigated including installing CHP (combined heat and power) which would enable the museum to generate some of its electricity on site, and then use the heat generated for heating space and water.

Now this is good news, this was precisely the point of DECs, highlight to occupiers the problems with the buildings so that they could take action and cut their energy usage, and of course their fuel bills too.

But I need to let you into a little secret. In order to meet the Governments regulations, buildings must have these Display Energy Certificates hung on their wall, but there is a neat workaround available, which is to simply issue default ratings of G which is a score of 200 incidentally. This can be done in less than 5 minutes by an accredited energy assessor without vistiing the building, without seeing any fuel bills, without having knowledge about the construction of layout of the building. This would meet the Government and EU Directive, and the decision could be made to leave the proper survey until possibly 2009, when things are less hectic, surveyors actually know what they are doing, the software is much improved and so on, oh and DEC will be cheaper of course.

I fully expect to see a HUGE number of G ratings issued this time round and if you looked closely at them, and found a large number of scores of 200, then you will now know why! A huge number of the data collectors being used are not qualified energy professionals, they are simply box tickers, given basic instructions in what to do and let loose on many of the largest municipal buildings in the country.

If the EPBD rollout was a school project, this Government would score a D- Very poor communication, failure to meet its own objectives and the actually quality of what has been produced is sadly, open to scrutiny.

Thinking of dodging Commercial EPCs?

2008-10-08T18:16:00.005+01:00

Think again! Comments here in the Birmingham Post article Property sales to be probed over energy performance that trading standards officers may be tempted to trawl through the land registry data checking that EPCs have been carried out on commercial property.

Reed Smith commercial property associate Simon Robinson clarified:

“There is a view that they may well use the Land Registry records to find out what transactions have taken place, but no-one really knows how they are going to deal with enforcement issues. It might be that they will do this to show that they have got teeth, although it must be said that the fines - ranging from 500 to 5,000 and linked to the rateable value of the property - are pretty small compared to the cost of providing a certificate in the first place.”

So with the commercial property sector as quiet as its been for 10 years (Source: Property Week magazine, July 2008) the introduction of Commercial EPCs, on top of the financial gloom and doom which shows no sign of evaporating any time soon, its no wonder that their introduction has been less then positively received.

Having spent the bulk of my morning in a repossessed chip and kebab shop I did wonder if the energy rating of this domestic-build poorly maintained building will make any difference to prospective tenants who, owing to the popularity of the location and the only barrier to entry being cash, will already be asked for a lease premium upwards of 20k. Yes it had no loft insulation, it also had no central heating. Plenty of evidence of rodents though, and maggots, and decomposing chicken carcasses. Yep, you bet I get all the glorious jobs to do but I don't mind a bit of it- fascinating to find out talking with another energy assessor about the enormous gaps and differences in the training and assessment process between the various training providers. Needless to say, there has been no joined up thinking in this industry yet, and wow, does it show! Still, whinging never got anything done, time to continue building the Commercial FAQs for our use as we are getting pepppered with all manner of questions from potential and actual clients right now. There is a huge knowledge gap across this new part of the EPBD roll-out and given we've had 6 years to get ready, it scares me to think about how wrong it could go if it were actually something complicated!

Countdown to the 'big two' ... Agency Expo and the NHER/SAVA Conference

2008-10-07T17:03:00.005+01:00

Just a week to go to the Agency Expo and the NHER/SAVA Conference follows one week later. I will be at both events and have been looking forward to both for some time now.

Agency Expo

Who could possibly turn their nose up at the opportunity to mix it with hundreds of shiny-suited, gelled hair and soon-to-be unemployed estate agents!! Yep, its the annual trade fair, previously called PCS Expo but now renamed Agency Expo, with total focus on the hair gel, er, I mean _the_ estate agency sector!

Given I own a small, but perfectly formed, agency, and even though we have forgotten what a buyer looks like there is certainly no harm in nosing round the latest offerings from companies trying to sell floorplans, virtual tours, HIPs, agency software, magazine subscriptions, referral networks and anything else you might find or need in an agency office. Well not quite, no hair gel company is listed as an exhibitor!

We almost exhibited this year but some quick cost/benefit figures showed that this year was not the right choice, there are still a few companies blowing marketing budgets and the financial pressures will mean next years event may be leaner in more ways than one and should be more suited for the audience we want to reach and with the pitch/rounded product we want to offer.

Very amusing to see some of the other exhibitors names, certainly a few that I have crossed swords with- lets see if they are still around the industry next year!

NHER/SAVA Conference

This is going to be the largest gathering of energy assessors in 2008 and the speaker list is impressive with some big hitters from the world of Energy. With an agenda spread over 2 days, and an opportunity to rack up some CPD for those who need some, its going to prove a very good networking opportunity for energy assessors. We still get calls in the office from energy assessors who don't know others living and working close to them and want help arranging holiday cover. Regional meetings have on the whole, fallen by the wayside which is a pity, but if everyone attending just meets one person who become a good contact and learns just one thing, then it has to be worth it. Somehow I think I'll be learning more than one thing looking at the variety of speakers.

Too many Commercial Energy Assessors, does this sound familiar?

Word reaches me that we actually have more commercial energy assessors qualified and in training than we actually need! Yep, its official folks, CLG have confirmed the worst-kept secret earlier today when they provided figures that demonstrated we actually have a total number of CEAs who are either accredited or finishing off their training that is higher than the CLG number for how many CEAs we need in 2008.

Not that it'll stop the training providers hoovering up more much-needed income.

The great energy assessor/home inspector groups cash giveaway

2008-09-24T13:11:00.005+01:00

Recently announced by NES, parent company of leading training providers NHER/SAVA, is the funding to the tune of 2,500 for regional groups of energy assessors and home inspectors who would like to use the funding to help develop their own group and allow it to thrive and progress.

Details are:

NEW CASH GRANT LAUNCHED TO HELP SUPPORT LOCAL ENERGY ASSESSOR GROUPS

National Energy Services (NES) is launching an Energy Assessor Community Grant worth 2,500 to help support energy assessor and home inspector networking groups.

Applications are being sought from all local or national voluntary groups in England and Wales who could use the cash to help with marketing, networking, welfare or other initiatives to benefit energy assessors (domestic or commercial) or home inspectors.

The winner of the Grant will be announced on the first day of the NES Annual Conference which is taking place at the International Convention Centre, Birmingham on 22-23 October 2008.

Brian Scannell, Managing Director of NES, said:
“We know that it is an incredibly tough market for many energy assessors, particularly new entrants who may be self-employed for the first time in their lives. Professional networking, online discussion forums and local support groups are a vital lifeline to share knowledge and experiences, swap notes and get advice and moral support. NES is committed to supporting our members, and we want to use this grant to help them build a thriving and high quality business environment.”

Applying for the Energy Assessor Community Grant is a short and easy process via an application form which can be downloaded

The deadline for all entries is Monday 13 October. Following a judging process by a panel of NES and independent experts, 2,500 will be given to the group that makes the most compelling case for support.

So best of luck to all those applying!

So who might apply for funding?

With the demise of many regional groups it might actually be a newer group that could receive the funding. The efforts that went on in regions such as the northwest, northeast, devon and cornwall, thames valley and so on have really come to nothing. Virtually no regional group is having what one what would regard as regular meeting in the sense that members organisations would be expected to have. Some group, particularly those in the north have imploded owing to the actions and attitude of a small minority, others just never had the commitment to actually organise and market regular events.

I went to my local event last night, 50mins drive for me as I am one of those living at the edge of the region. 9 people turned up! We used to have 25-30 on a monthly basis. Opinion was along the lines of either its shaken up, or it dies. May well be my last visit, I need to get something out of attending events, as everyone else does. In my case its networking and seeing if there are leads I can run with, but with the attendance dropping away, the odds get ever-longer.

No structures have remained in place, whether business groups or those based on Institute arrangements. Its turning into a dead loss right now, and all this at a time when we record numbers of qualified and accredited DEA/HIs.

What a pity, but back to the positives then.... to those who have a quietly successful group, do make sure you apply for funding, there is so little cash floating about in the industry, that the chance to get a decent website, some support with administration and marketing, plus even potentially the meeting room costs means it could provide a very good boost or launchpad for any regional group.

DEA/HI Accreditation numbers update (7,930 accredited)

2008-08-21T22:47:00.004+01:00

And finally, a mere 5 and half months after CLG were kind enough to give us the last update as to how many more DEA/HIs have been conned to train we have an update!

Conned to join the legions of DEA/HI cannon fodder sat every morning, feet up watching Jeremy Kyle, waiting for the phone to ring with an EPC at 20 quid or to play fastest finger first with panel text messages.

Promised a new career, new opportunities, a fresh start, the mandatory EPC, a money-spinner and guaranteed income some rogue training providers would have you believe. The reality as we know is very much another story and the numbers that follow spell this out in harsh terms.

Assessor Numbers as of 23 May 08

Accredited = 7,930 (+829 from 7,101 on 6 Mar)
Qualified = 1,464 (passed exams and qualified, but not yet become accredited)
Passed exams = 4,816
Total in system who have passed exams or progressed further = 14,210 (+2,784 from 11,426)

Lets just pause there a minute shall we cos I smell a rat. So what CLG said is that on 6 March we had 11,426 DEA/HIs in the system and a mere 10 weeks later we have magically gained another 2,784 DEA/HIs in the system. Sorry but something whiffs a bit, either CLG were not gathering data from all the training providers, and lets face it there are so many now, breeding like hamsters they are, and all being unregulated of course so its hard to keep up, or, CLG have not given us an update for 5 and half months because they were afraid of the impact of having ANOTHER 2,784 DEA/HIs joining the industry. Wouldn't look good in the press now would it?

I don't even need to do the maths here to tell anyone that 2,784 is more than enough DEA/HIs to service the WHOLE COUNTRY in 2008. Not sure I was saying any different earlier in the year actually when CLG and others were suggesting 3,000-3,500 but since we knew employed panels were on the rise, it was obvious that a lot less self-employed DEA/HIs were going to be needed. See my calculations later in this post that prove my point.

Back to DEA/HIs then, remember them, hard to avoid bumping into one nowadays I suppose. So for those DEA/HIs who need to know how many 'contracts' they you need to take out to thin the local competition, take a look here. Maybe try and negotiate a bulk rate per 100 kills?

North East 368 + 22 was 346
North West 947 + 102 was 845
Yorkshire & The Humber 582 + 45 was 537
East Midlands 618 + 83 was 535
West Midlands 743 + 73 was 670
East of England 789 + 61 was 728
London 644 + 61 was 583
South East 1289 + 124 was 1165
South West 1021 + 111 was 910
Wales 426 + 50 was 376
Unknown 503 + 97 was 406
Total 7930 + 829 was 7,101

Coming onto just how busy everyone is then. Rightmove took on 120,436 new instructions in July and cover 90% of the market so we have to factor that up to 133,818 to give an estimated total number of new instructions in July 08. (This may actually be an over-estimate since some 'new' properties have actually gone 'multi-agency' and are therefore not requiring an EPC as they already have a HIP)

Then take our fresh and crispy selection of 7,930 burned DEAs and lets 'do the math' as our relay baton-dropping cousins would say.

133,818 divided by 7,930 gives 16.87 EPCs per DEA in July 08, less than one day even based on 20 working days per month assuming you aren't kind enough to work at weekends or any unsociable hours.

Guess you can see where the problem is? We have 14,210 - 7,930 = 6,280 more DEA/HIs queuing up to join the legions of existing under-utilised DEA/HIs.

Impact of this, sorry to say this, cos I've been in from the start and been a strong advocate of doing a good job, reasonable fees etc. but the outcome is the continuation of the fee crashing we have seen. I don't know how much lower it will go, with ever-cheaper accreditation available, thats another 2-5 that will come off the headline panel EPC prices I would wager.

Lots of people and companies in this industry are in dire financial straits, I heard today of one personal search company in Yorkshire that has folded, we have lost Hipstar today of course and the property sector is in freefall and confidence is at rock-bottom.

Another scary point of course is that is pretty much a year to the day since CLG first published any figures at all when we were first informed by CLG that we had 525 accredited DEA/HIs (and that was a reason to delay the rollout of HIPs from 1 June for another few months).

Worrying CLG is still populated by civil servants who are happy to see Data Collectors for EPCs, they want pain-free implementation. I have met them, held meeting with them and their approach worries me a great deal. So how can so many people conspire to keep cocking it up?

DEC rollout- a failure already with watered down implementation guidelines already in place
Commercial EPC rollout - failure, not enough accredited commercial energy assessors and no straight answers given.

Shoddy project management, thats what.

HIPSTAR are entering liquidation

2008-08-21T13:04:00.002+01:00

And lo it came to pass, another big name pack provider goes to the wall.

No shock really. Hipstar have followed Habitus as another franchisor/pack provider to cease trading.

The company is currently being put into liquidation.
There has been no stock market announcement from the parent company, Network Surveyors
The former sales staff are ringing around looking for jobs

My own personal view is that they never captured the market share they should have done given the 3-4mil spent last year on the running and marketing of Hipstar. We have spoken with over 1000 agents but very few of them actually use Hipstar, certainly not enough of a proportion to keep such a substantial company ticking over.

I have been tracking this company for some months on my blog as the share price has tumbled, the financial results have not been pretty and just a couple of weeks ago, the owner purchased a large chunk of shares which will have stopped a further fall. The owner family own around 93% of the shares issued giving it less liquidity than other shares that you may have heard of. Hipstar hadn't booked a stand for Agency Expo where the rest of the free-spending pack providers will be handing out free biros, boxes of mints and anything else that agents might need to keep them alive in this atrocious market.

Hipstar Franchisees

What is to become of the franchisees who all spent many thousands of pounds buying areas. While Hipster specifically isn't named here, take a look at this experience and the financial return this franchisee has had: HIP Franchisor keep moving goalposts

My Blog postings

Tue 22 July 2008 Network Data Holdings (HIPSTAR) shares drop off a cliff
Wed 12 April 2008 Hipstar announces loss owing to HIPs
Tue 25 March 2008 Hipstar extends its credit facilities

Hipstar Losses

2006 1,333,000 (When the parent group Network Data Holdings made a profit of 271,000)
2007 3,579,000 (When the parent group Network Data Holdings made a loss of 1,105,000)

You can see more financial information about Network Data and Hipstar here

CLG holding their breath as the commercial EPC rollout 'cat' begins to topple out of the bag

2008-08-12T22:25:00.003+01:00

Commercial EPC and Display Energy Certificate rollout 'AT RISK'

In a remarkable update to my blog update of last week DEC assessors let down by CLG we have now received a further snippet of info from CLG which is more than enough to raise the proverbial eyebrow. After all, CLG have 'form' in the delaying of the rollout out of every key phase to date of both HIPs and EPCs. Remember last May 22nd, when with just a handful of days to go to June 1st, we had yet another delay to the HIP and EPC rollout announced? What would any of us wager on either:

a) A delay of the rollout to the third phase of the commercial EPC rollout due to start in October

b) Zero policing of the rollout and no fines issued hence allowing a 'soft' rollout but at the same time allowing the commercial property professionals to continue without taking on board the need for EPCs. Maybe a fudged compromise with the insertion of a default certificate with a rating of 200 and a G rating?

Anyway, here's the Freedom of Information Act request with CLG seeking to know the number of Non Domestic Assessors in Training, both Qualified and Accredited. The response received last Thursday was
"At this time, the harm that may be caused to the success of the project, which is in the public interest, outweighs the general public interest of disclosure."

What a stunning reply, yes it may be honest, but to the commercial property world who have had some years to prepare for the rollout, and certainly the whole of 2008 to prepare for the October rollout, this looks only slightly less than shambolic.

I guess the next step is to take one of the options above. The DEC rollout has already been watered down with a significant reduction in the number of buildings that need a full DEC to be completed following last weeks 'clarification' from CLG.

However, to make it easier for public authorities with multiple buildings on one site to comply with the legislation, a site-based approach for the first year is to be allowed where it is not possible to produce individual DECs. This means that only one DEC will need to be produced based on the total energy consumption of the buildings on the site. Public bodies most likely to be affected by this approach are NHS Trusts, universities and schools.

The story doesn't stop here, lets see what the next chapter brings!

What to do with a problem like IDEA?

2008-08-10T19:12:00.008+01:00

Finally it seems, the IDEA juggernaut is fuelled to the brim and ready to launch on the start of its journey to achieve global domination. With promises of paying DEAs the full market rate, certainly a number of the more vocal IDEA members are now in a frenzy singing its praises.

First up though is the appointment of a Committee comprising members and 13 people have stuck their arm up and want a piece of the action, here they are, voting is still open for another 2 weeks but you can see a few numbers anyway:

Nick Phillips
Colin Bailey 33 votes
Brian Blunden 14 votes
Driss Charrouf 12 votes
Haley Fairless 32 votes
Dave Halligan 32 votes
Meirin Jones 24 votes
Ian Macpherson 21 votes
Sarah Mason 36 votes
Mark Norris
John Oxley 25 votes
James Robertshaw 28 votes
Gary Ward 20 votes

Every one is a qualified and accredited Domestic Energy Assessor (DEA) and none have the HI qualification. Perhaps this will assist in keeping the focus on the issues facing the majority of folk carrying out EPCs, namely, the DEAs.

A controversial way to commence proceedings

Each and every candidate has been asked to sign a confidentiality agreement pertaining to all discussions and information regarding IDEA. This is surely a unique move for committee members of an Institute, who are neither employees nor Directors of the company.

2 candidates have already withdrawn.

Just days into the voting process, 2 of the above candidates have already withdrawn their candidature. In a revealing comment, one of them said "I remove myself from the candidate list based on.... the requirement to sign a 3 year confidentiality agreement, which for me is too onerous for a voluntary position."

Will IDEA ever be run in a proper way?

Non-profit making companies would have a Board, containing members and invited others. IDEA however, proposes to have Directors who have full decision-making powers and are not accountable to the membership in any way. The Directors have the power to do whatever they like with IDEA, the members funds and so on. What price its tee'd up to be bought out in the future?

So sadly our list of 13, well minus 2 obviously actually have NO decision making capacity, they are simply there to advise and provide information to the Directors, who are the decision-makers.

I have commented elsewhere about the interest that those running IDEA have in making money: May 2008 17 ways IDEA are making money

What we have here for the committee is accountability without responsibility. IDEA has been run as a personal fiefdom up until now, but these elections were sold on the promise of changing that. Sadly they are simply going to provide a veneer. There are a number of individuals who disagree with me, but the one thing linking them all is that they are all IDEA members as opposed to being DEAs considering which, if any, members organisation to join.

IDEA lower their sights substantially by 75%

Not only have IDEA been obliged to set the membership fee at the lowest rate offered in a poll of members, now the actual number of members is less important than it was before when the target was 2000 members. In a remarkable move the self-appointed lobbyist/CEO/Chairman of IDEA has stated that "even if we only got 500 signed up initially this would still be more than the combined membership of IHI and NARHI..."

An astonishing U-turn indeed but it feels more like cutting the cloth according to interest level. With a potential membership of around 12,000, is 500 members, or just over 4% of the total of those in the industry really enough to be THE conclusive membership body?

All we can do in what is still a new industry is wish IDEA good luck, its got a history to be ashamed of, but with new blood on board, its got as good a chance as any. Let the voting commence! (well, continue anyway!)

Energy Assessor Accreditation Scheme On Holiday

2008-08-10T09:00:00.001+01:00

In case you weren't aware NRG Experts cannot provide any work to DEA/HIs accredited with HI Certification between 6th and 14th August. Sadly this is because the accreditation scheme is closed for a holiday break.

Kick back and top up your tan, never a bad move, just remember to splash on some factor 20 before spending a week in the Sun.

I am mildly concerned that this leaves some DEA/HIs hung out to dry if they need to speak with their accreditation scheme, technical helpline and so on. Interesting times indeed!

More government consultations. Finally an estate agent is fined for HIPs

2008-08-09T12:26:00.007+01:00

Well I'm the first to comment on the lack of industry consultation, so its good to see that CLG are putting the feelers out to those will implement, drive and ultimately, you would hope, benefit from the ongoing implementation of Government and EU legislation.

Its been a while since we've had so many on-going consultations. Lets have a run through and see what fun lies ahead then, plus links to other recent documentation published to guide the EPC and HIP industry to smooth the troubled waters of the EPBD Implementation.

Improving Consumer Information in the Home Information Pack

This consultation seeks views on improving consumer information in Home Information Packs, the inclusion of a mandatory Property Information Questionnaire (PIQ) and finalising leasehold requirements in HIPs. Published 29 July 2008. Closing date: 30 Sept 2008

and following up on a consultation paper earlier in the year about personal searches, their costs and so on...

Local Authorities (Charges for Property Searches) (England) (Wales) Regulations: A consultation paper

This consultation paper sets out draft Regulations to implement the Government's proposals on future arrangements for Local Authority charges for property search services. Published: 31 July 2008. Closing date: 30 Sept 2008

A guide to generating Energy Performance Certificates for similar dwellings owned by the same landlord

Now this has been causing a minor kerfuffle amongst those interested in social housing and the argument for and against Data Collectors but it does at least go some way to explaining how to deal with a portfolio of properties and to assist in understanding the approaches that may be adopted when producing EPCs. This document explains things to DEA/HIs, accreditation and training schemes. Yes I think I can group those last two together can't I :)

Here is its associated document produced a few weeks ago that gives the story to landlords Energy performance certificates for dwellings in the social and private rented sectors: A guide for landlords

Green Homes Service

The much-heralded Green Homes Service has been ticking along slowly, we have further initiatives from the EST being piloted, locally to me coincidentally, but if you want to see some of the thinking about why its needed and how it can provide a demonstrable benefit then read the following document. You have to give CLG credit on this, the very need to produce an Impact Assessment before going ahead with initiatives at least gives some opportunity for the risk to be highlighted before cash is wasted and momentum lost. Impact Assessments can be quite boring to read, but I thoroughly enjoy looking at the thinking that has gone on to support and develop the arguments that the solutions are put in place to solve and/or resolve.

So here is the consultation document and the Impact Assessment:
The Next Steps: EPCs and the establishment of the Green Homes Service
Impact Assessment - The Next Steps: EPCs and the establishment of the Green Homes Service

These documents considering a range of proposals:

1: Extending access to the domestic EPC register to the Energy Saving Trust
2: Extending access to the non-domestic EPC register to the Carbon Trust
3: Extending access to both the domestic and non-domestic EPC registers to energy assessors to allow them to search by address
4: Extending access to the non-domestic database to the general public so that they can see whether a building has an EPC, although not download the EPC

and still the flow of information from CLG recently does not stop- anyone would think if this wasn't all rolled out smoothly the Government would be facing a whopping great fine on January 1st 2009! Ah, yes thats right, thats exactly what the Government would be facing, and thats never a smart move appearing to be slow on politically sensitive green issues.

Commercial EPCs, additional guidance published.

A guide to energy performance certificates for the construction, sale and let of non-dwellings (2nd edition July 2008)

This guide provides an introduction to energy performance certificates for non-dwellings. It describes the scope and requirements of the Regulations that apply on construction, sale or let and provides guidance on how these are applied in practice.

First penalty charge notice issued

The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) recently confirmed that they have been notified of the first penalty charge notice in relation to HIPs being issued. Oxfordshire Trading Standards informed the OFT that the notice was issued to a local estate agent because they had not joined an approved HIPs redress scheme.

Estate agents in England and Wales marketing homes for sale with HIPs must belong to an approved redress scheme for HIP-related complaints, giving consumers guaranteed access to redress for HIP-related complaints against estate agents.

LSL (Your Move, Reeds Rains) declare loss & halt dividend

2008-08-09T12:12:00.003+01:00

LSL is one of the leading residential property services companies in the UK and provides a broad range of services to its customer who are principally mortgage lenders, as well as buyers and sellers of residential properties. LSL’s main operations are its surveying business, which operates under the e.surv, Barnwoods and Chancellors Associates brands, its estate agency business, which includes the Your Move and Reeds Rains brands, and its financial services business.

LSL Property Services Plc slipped to a first-half loss in a very difficult market and expects conditions to remain challenging for some time.

Your Move and Reeds Rains exchange income down by 48% and turnover down 27%

The estate agency turnover decreased by 25% to 39.4m (2007: 52.8m) and the underlying operating loss was 4.1m (2007: profit 6.5m).

The group did not recommend an interim dividend. It had paid an interim dividend of 3 pence a year earlier.

For the six months to June 30 2008, the group reported a pretax loss of 0.8 million pounds compared with a 12.1 million profit a year earlier, while revenue fell 10 percent to 93.1 million pounds.

Net debt of 61.7m at 30 June 2008 (2007: 56.3m). Net assets as at 30 June 2008 were 38.0m, a reduction of 4.9m from the previous year end. Net debt as at 30 June 2008 was 61.7m, an increase of 13m from the previous year end. The Group has a borrowing facility of 95m in place until July 2010, of which 36.9m was undrawn at 30 June 2008.

DEC assessors let down by CLG

2008-08-04T09:00:00.001+01:00

Display Energy Certificates are only required for buildings with a total useful floor area over 1,000m2 that are occupied by a public authority and institution providing a public service to a large number of persons and therefore visited by those persons. They are valid for one year. The accompanying Advisory Report is valid for seven years.

The requirement for Display Energy Certificates comes into effect from 1 October 2008.

With the deadline still looming and no publication of the number of DEC assessors in training, CLG dropped yet another bombshell relating to the rollout of the EPBD wih the watering down of the requirements of the DEC implementation.

It was understood that all public buildings were to be assessed, yet now the watering down states:

However, to make it easier for public authorities with multiple buildings on one site to comply with the legislation, a site-based approach for the first year is to be allowed where it is not possible to produce individual DECs. This means that only one DEC will need to be produced based on the total energy consumption of the buildings on the site. Public bodies most likely to be affected by this approach are NHS Trusts, universities and schools.

Not really the news that DEC assessors want to hear. Having invested money in training they will be looking for a reasonable return and once again, like their Domestic Energy Assessor cousins, will be concerned to see an artificial drop in workload introduced before the implementation date has been reached.

You can see a little more detail about measures to support the smooth introduction of Display Energy Certificates on the CLG website, but it is extremely disappointing that this information is published on a Friday afternoon and the climb-down is not given the appropriate level of publicity to ensure that those involved in DECs will be informed promptly about this. It doesn't appear in CLG News, and whilst CLG may regard this latest statement as nothing more than clarification, it will have a detrimental impact not only on those already accredited as DEC assessors, but also those still in training or who may be considering the option to train as a DEC assessor.

IDEA issues gagging orders to Committee candidates

2008-08-03T19:07:00.005+01:00

In a move which surely raises the question: "Have IDEA learned nothing about being perceived as a top-down fiefdom?" IDEA have now issued confidentiality agreements to each of the candidates standing for the 2008-09 Committee.

The explanation given was

"... just issued a confidentiality agreement to all of the candidates ... and it is a mandatory requirement that they each sign and return this ... before being eligible to stand for election. The reason for this is that sadly two ex steering group candidates ... revealed details of confidential discussions concerning IDEA's future plans, plus another ex steering group member has been allegedly feeding info to ..."

We can only hope that the future of IDEA is more positive and beneficial than its recent past when IDEA publicly announced that EPC fees had fallen to 30.00 or less winning few favours amongst DEA/HIs hacked off with ever-plummeting fees.

Although confidentiality agreements seem a worthwhile concept to encourage unity as IDEA attempts to head away from being 90% Pack Provider and 'deal maker'/10% lobby group, they won't actually stand up to closer scrutiny if challenged (case law is out there). Lets hope its just not a problem and this time round IDEA can re-launch with a robust and transparent framework that delivers real members benefits and representation.

Best of luck to all 2008-09 candidates (almost all of who are HI forum members and contributors too), almost without exception, you have a shoddy organisation reputation to overcome that was nothing of your doing, but with some hard graft it can be done. The opportunities remain huge, there are over 8000 accredited DEA/HIs looking for leadership, could it be that IDEA Mark II can provide it?

Voting starts next week, to all IDEA members, remember to stick your X in the box!

News from around the DEA/HI members organisations

2008-08-02T23:33:00.007+01:00

So then, like a good friend of mine, who attended his DEA course last week, you are new to the industry, looking to join a like-minded body of individuals in a profession that by its very nature involves a great deal of lone-working. Makes the need to join a members organisation even more important really, in order to keep up with whats happening in an industry where the goal posts seem to move on a monthly basis.

Time for a run through them all then, we've been up and running for a year with EPCs, so what have the members organisations been up to then? Running through them all then, we have 4 at various stages of birth, life and death.

NARHI National Association of Registered Home Inspectors

Still headed by the busy bee Hugh Dunsmore-Hardy who I have bumped into at various meetings since the first problems with the HIP rollout dating back to Autumn 2006. NARHI no longer have an active roll within the DEA/HI community itself, but certainly Hugh is a valuable asset to the pro-HIP, pro-HCR and pro-EPC community, so should NARHI go ahead with its rumoured merger or be taken over by IHI, it would be a remarkably stupid move not to have Hugh as roving representation. You will not find a greater depth of knowledge than he has.

You can find more details about how to join NARHI here.

IHI

Banishing the theory that this organisation was only suited for Home Inspectors, the Institute for Home Inspection recently revealed that over two-thirds of its membership are in fact standalone DEAs and that number is increasing all the time.

Recently the IHI have been running a series of surveys as part of their contribution into the one of the CLG Consultation Groups.

The first survey was called "The State of the Industry" and the outcome gave a good indication of current fee levels and working conditions for IHI members and across the DEA spectrum.

The second survey, conducted by a chap I know called Dean Jones was entitled "Where Are We Going" and concentrated on the circumstances surrounding Certification, panel management, minimum EPC fees levels and the thorny subject of data collectors.

There is no sign of IHI losing its way or indeed fading away. Maybe a bit more marketing about what it is actually doing and fewer comments about how its all happening 'behind the scenes' will help it drive forward and evolve into a useful representative body for DEA/HIs. It certainly has senior members with vast amounts of property experience and a bank balance that other organisations could only dream about.

You can find more details about how to join IHI here

IDEA

IDEA is itself going through something of a relaunch having completely fouled up last year. The top 2 of Jim Gillespie and Steve Roberts stay the self-appointed leadership and voting commences next week for the balance of the first committee. Having personally sat on the first Steering Group, I can only wish the committee the very best of luck, IDEA has considerable baggage having being hijacked by those wanting to simply benefit from the income of being a pack provider, quite whether it can gain the credibility to attract and retain members remains to be seen. With a claimed membership of 1897 individuals, although these numbers do come from the era of 'free membership' it will be interesting to see if IDEA will introduce the transparency as befits the use of the protected term Institute and put its real fee-paying membership numbers on its website later this year. Anecdotal evidence suggests that members would like to be represented a lot bit more, and 'sold' deals a bit less- must be a lesson in there you would hope.

A separate blog posting follows about the IDEA committee forming process.

ProDEA

And quietly in the shadows there are whispers of positive talk, positive representation, positive action by DEAs and the hoped-for positive outcomes by doing the right thing for DEAs. Could it be that ProDEA, in discussions about its formative steps can launch and capture the imagination of the DEA community? Seems to have an ideal opportunity with fewer than 500 paying members of any organisation right now, that leaves over 10,500 DEA/HIs looking for a group they feel they can align to. I suspect we'll be hearing more about ProDEA in the coming weeks, and we can only wish all involved well.

There are no joining details for ProDEA available at this time, but do keep an eye on www.prodea.org.uk where any announcements are most likely to be made.

I have already heard the arguments about Do we need another organisation?, in fact they are nicely laid out here in the article Energy assessors rally behind new proposed body by my fellow blogger MikeC of Energy-Performance-Certificates.org but frankly, as a DEA, its not obvious who to pick and why? No wonder we see another organisation being discussed and formed, and I don't for one minute think it will be the last.

Too many members organisations, surely?

No way Jose! This industry has upward of 12,000 DEA/HIs in it right now, only when those who have run out of money and/or patience have left the industry well we see who is left, and only then will any great consolidation be on the cards.

As an individual I am not a member of any of the above organisations. I am unlikely to practice as a DEA or HI in the next 6 months and until such time as that may change, my time, energy, and focus must be elsewhere.