UK lags behind China and India on commercial building retrofits

While the UK fared well in comparison to the US and the rest of Europe in the annual Energy
Efficiency Indicator from sustainable building products supplier Johnson Controls, the emerging Asian superpowers are setting the standard.

The report is based on a survey of more than 2,800 executives and managers responsible for making investments and managing energy in commercial buildings worldwide.

It found that 68 per cent of UK commercial firms were expecting to make energy efficiency
improvements over the next year.

This put the country ahead of Germany (49 per cent), the US and Canada (52 per cent) and the rest of Europe (62 per cent).

But India and China were way out in front with 87 and 90 per cent of respondents respectively expecting to carry out energy efficiency work in the next year.

Energy prices are a huge driver for the emerging economies. Respondents from the two nations were the most afraid that energy prices would rise, with 88 per cent of the respondents from China and 79 per cent of those from India expressing concerns.

This compared with 68 per cent in Europe, and 64 per cent in North America.

The UK construction industry has been urged to lead the country’s sustainability drive. Chief Construction Adviser Paul Morrell has put the creation of a 40-year plan for a low-carbon construction industry at the heart of his role. He has called for a huge programme of work to be used to reform the industry’s structure, export products and skills, and excite a future generation of potential recruits.

Johnson Controls vice-president for global energy and sustainability Clay Nesler said it was good to see China and India taking sustainability so seriously as they both had large and fast-building programmes.

Mr Nesler said the report highlighted some positive areas for the UK.

“One of the areas that reflects strongly is that 23 per cent of respondents in the UK consider energy management to be important.

“That compares to 16 per cent in the US, 15 per cent in Germany and 14 per cent across the rest of Europe.

“Through policies like the Carbon Reduction Commitment the UK has been a strong leader in
developing legislation for reducing greenhouse gas.”

Solar renewable technologies topped the global wanted list for commercial energy efficiency
improvements. Clients in the UK and Germany were the most likely to explore geothermal technologies, while India and the UK were the most likely to pursue windpower opportunities.

Over the past year, 21 per cent of UK respondents had installed renewable energy systems,
compared with 8 per cent in the US and Canada, 24 per cent across Europe, 25 per cent in Germany, 50 per cent in India and 52 per cent in China.