More than ninety per cent of buildings are existing. How do you measure their sustainability? And how can you demonstrate improvements in an efficient manner?

BREEAM in Use (BIU) was developed to answer these questions. It is a low-threshold instrument for periodically measuring and improving the sustainability of existing properties, regardless of their age.

The method has three components:

• Asset: how sustainable is the building?
• Management: how sustainable is the building being managed?
• Use: How sustainable is/are the building’s user(s)?

You are not obliged to measure or certify all the components.

Dutch Green Building Council has laid down the method in an officially recognised BiU assessment guideline. This describes how the certification process works, who must do what, and what the (sustainability) requirements (=credits) are. The more credits achieved, the higher the ultimate BiU score – ranging from one to five stars, from sustainable to very sustainable. A BIU certificate is valid for three years, after which it must be applied for again.

BiU is primarily intended to be self-implementing. However, should you require support, we can provide this by:

• Providing information about the method. What type of property is it intended for? How does it work? What do you need to do?
• Preparing a quick scan that gives an indication of the current BiU score of your building, with suggestions for how to raise the score further.
• The complete supervision of your BiU trajectory, with solutions that have proven their value in practice.
• After obtaining the BiU certificate: an annual assessment to see whether you are still on course with your green ambitions: are the operating costs falling as expected? Are there opportunities to improve the BiU score?

A BiU certificate is also accepted as full evidence for real estate that is subject to an Energy Audit obligation.

Want to know more? Lizette van der Feer (06-8344 3363) or Wytze Boekhout (06-4164 0873) is willing to tell you more.