ABSTRACT
A longitudinal variability in operational energy use has to be taken into account when investigating the energy performance gap. Although building energy modelling is an integral part of design process, research has shown that buildings can use twice the amount of their predicted regulatory energy performance. Negating the performance gap starts at the beginning of a project. Compliance modelling is useful to assess the energy efficiency of buildings under standardised conditions to determine if minimum performance requirements are met. Investigation of predicted and measured energy use is necessary in order to understand the underlying causes of the performance gap. There is a need for design stage calculation methodologies to address all aspects of building energy consumption for whole building simulation, including regulated and unregulated uses and predictions of actual operation. Gathering more evidence on both the performance gap and its underlying issues can support feedback mechanisms and prioritise principle issues.
