Reasons to Retrofit

There is an enormous stock of buildings in the world, many of which fall below modern standards in energy performance, sustainability, condition or accommodation. It is interesting to note that in England, for example, the 2007 English Housing Condition Survey found some 7.7 million homes fell below government decency standards. ¹ This represented 35 per cent of housing at the time. Apart from the need to improve the energy efficiency of the existing building stock, it is clear that many buildings – commercial and residential – are in need of improvement. This chapter looks at the issues involved in deciding whether to refurbish an existing building or to build a replacement, either by demolishing the existing one or building on an empty site elsewhere. Clearly there are many criteria involved in making this decision and the nature of the decision-making process will vary between residential and non-residential, privately and publicly owned, greenfield and urban location, while also having to take into account plot size, structural condition, budgetary constraints, planning constraints, accommodation needs and other objectives of the building owner/developer.