BCA Section J Assessment
A BCA Section J Assessment is performed on a non residential building in order to determine its design compliance with energy efficiency requirements of the BCA. There are two methods that can be used to perform a BCA Section J Assessment and the results of these practices are then reflected on a report which can be submitted to the LGA council of a development to demonstrate the building's compliance with the energy efficiency requirements of the BCA.
BCA Section J Assessment
There are essentially three methods to perform a BCA Section J assessment on a building's design. Deemed to Satisfy or DTS method, Alternative Solution which is the Verification Method JV3 using a reference building and a combination of the above methods. Either of the two distinct methods have their own advantages and shortcomings but due to its much lower assessment fees and compilation time, a BCA Section J assessment using a DTS report is generally the preferred and widely accepted solution although for certain design solutions a BCA Section J Alternative Solution is the only possible method.
BCA Section J Assessment Deemed to Satisfy (DTS) Method
One of the two methods for a BCA Section J Assessment is to design the building to meet all the energy efficiency Deemed to Satisfy provisions of the BCA Section J parts J0 to J8 and all the specifications and state and territory specific requirements. According to Part A0.5 of the BCA, complying with the Deemed to Satisfy provisions of the BCA in any section meets the performance requirements of the BCA in that section.
To perform this type of assessment, the design of the proposed building is checked and challenged versus all the clauses and requirements of the BCA Section J parts J0 to J8 and every referenced section in those parts, specifications J1.2 to J6 and BCA Volume One Appendices; Variations and Additions which specifies the state and territory specific requirements for each section of the BCA. The results of this assessment are then being reflected in a proper and professional format into a BCA Section J report which can be submitted to the LGA council of the proposed development to demonstrate BCA Section J compliance.
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BCA Section J Assessment of an Alternative Solution (Reference Building) Method
According to Part A0.5 the other method of performing an energy efficiency assessment is to follow a BCA Section J Alternative Solution path. Part A0.9 states that a Verification Method nominated in the BCA is considered to be an acceptable Assessment Method to demonstrate the compliance. In the Verifications Methods sub-section of the BCA Section J 2010 clause JV3 Verification Using a Reference Building lists procedures and guidelines to follow to perform a BCA Section J assessment for an Alternative Solution approach.
In the Alternative Solution method a reference building is used for benchmarking the energy efficiency performance of the proposed design and the proposed design must demonstrate equal or better performance compared to the reference building in order to be considered meeting the requirements of the BCA Section J. A computer thermal simulation program following the guidelines of the ABCB Protocol for Building Energy Analysis Software is used to estimate the annual energy consumption of the proposed design and the reference building. The annual energy consumption is the recognized comparison metric between the proposed design and the reference building.
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