International Rating Systems And Their Applicability On Historic
Buildings
INGY NAGUIB
Architecture department
Assistant teacher, Pharos University, and PhD candidate at Alexandria University
El Shatby, Alexandria
EGYPT
Abstract: - This paper presents a review of the guidelines set by different rating systems around the world, to deal
with historic buildings. it addresses the many aspects of rating tools and weighing of credits criteria in order to
better understand the mutual relationship between the existing situation and the goal to reach. first, the particular
cosiderations of rating systems are reviewed. Finally, all aspects are combined into a table that contains a full list
of rating tools categories that could be implemented on historic buildings, with high performance.
Key-Words: - Rating credit, green building, renewable energy, historic building, energy efficient.
1 Introduction
Green rating systems enhances the design
process by offering guidelines and metrics that
improve collaboration and provide a framework that
defines sustainability and links project issues and
solutions within the context of sustainability. Also it
provides economic benefits by reducing waste and
energy costs and provides opportunities for tax
incentives and long-term operating cost savings.
Using a green rating system often results in a more
efficient, durable and resilient project. Projects rated
green are better designed to prevent losses from fire
and plumbing damage and withstand unpredictable
energy prices. Green rating systems challenge teams
to look at the project from new angles that present
possibilities for reducing costs, extending project
life, attracting investors, appealing to stakeholders
and the public, improving community well-being
and many other benefits that increase the owner's
competitive edge. These rating systems also
promote stakeholder participation and provide
milestones, which help to monitor progress and keep
the project team on track. Projects designed with the
sustainable framework of a green rating system
create more livable and resilient communities with
reduced waste, opportunities to conserve and protect
natural ecosystems, and residents who enjoy
improved air and water quality.
2 Research objectives
The objective of this study is to identify the
ratings barriers needed for applying green historical
restoration projects. When working with a suite of
standards that is in conflict with the designer’s goal
of maintaining authenticity, obstacles tend to arise.
The intent of this study to compare obstacles that
arose during restoration projects, which lead the
architect to choose between scoring the building
versus making restoration more authentic.
With so many systems, still there is no rating
system that can be applied to historical preservation,
except for LEED-V4 wich started to add 10 points
directly support preservation activities. This is
where the problem arises for preservationist
professionals, because they are having to force fit
their project into one of the existing systems while
still attempting to maintain the authenticity of the
structure. If the designer wishes to create a
recognized green building, they must work with a
suite of standards that at times is in conflict with
their goal of maintaining authenticity.
This research will benefit the construction
industry by demonstrating the need for a green
rating system that allows historical buildings to
integrate the restoration process with the
sustainability and energy efficiency rating system.
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3 International rating models
RATING SYSTEM
LEED
GREEN PYRAMID
BREEAM
CASBEE
Green Star
Estedama Pearl
Green mark
Gbtool
Green Glob
BEAM
GBAS
NABERS
Green Key
DGNB
HQE
GKHA
Table 1: rating systems origin, by the researcher. [1]
In the folowing papers some of the previous
rating systems will be analytically presented.
2.1 LEED (Leadership in Energy and
Evironmental Design)
LEED is Developed by the U.S. Green Building
Council USGBC in 2000 through a consensus based
process, LEED serves as a tool for buildings of all
types and sizes.
It was designed to provide the industry with a
suite of standards for the environmentally
sustainable design, construction, neighborhoods,
and building operations. The building’s design
committee uses a checklist to measure ensure that
the new building maximizes energy use [2]. In the
beginning, USGBC started with just LEED for New
Construction;
after that new rating systems were added:
1. LEED for Building Design +
Construction BD+C
2. LEED for Interior Design +
Construction ID+C
3. LEED for Building Operations +
Maintenance O+M
4. LEED for Neighborhood
Development ND
In LEED-ND (2009 v3) neighborhood
development and new construction, this system is
the most used one for historic buildings; as Historic
preservation values are particularly addressed in
NPD Credit 1: Walkable Streets and GIB, Credits 4:
Existing Building Reuse and credit 5: Historic
Building Preservation & Reuse. These credits
represent a much stronger recognition of historic
preservation laws and concepts than has heretofore
existed. To achieve this credit, no historic building
or portion of a historic building may be demolished
as part of the project. An exception is granted only
in instances where approval for such action is
provided by the appropriate review body, For
buildings listed locally, the local historic
preservation review board, or equivalent body must
grant approval, For buildings listed in a State
Register or in the National Register of Historic
Places, approval must appear in a programmatic
agreement with the State Historic Preservation. It is
worth noting that it would still be possible, with this
current construction, to demolish a historic building
and simply not opt for either of these two credits, as
it is only a prerequisite for these two credits, and not
for LEED ND on the whole.
A new rating system has been developed to meet
the need of the historic buidings called LEED for
Neighborhood Development and historic
presevation LEED-ND V4 (march 2013)
This new system has to Consider preservation and
adaptive reuse value-added in green building
projects. LEED-ND projects and historic resources
attempt to either create or preserve distinct places,
where visitors feel connected to their communities
and to the built environment through appreciation of
the past or a plan for the future. this program is not
designed to rate individual buildings. Rather, it
takes into account the connections between
buildings and their context as well as the natural
environment.
The new certification Greenbuild 2013: LEED
v4 adds specific points for historic preservation and
adaptive use in the newly introduced Building Life-
Cycle Reduction Impact credit. [3]
“Now any building listed in the National or State
Registers and/or locally designated automatically
gets 5 points, a victory for old buildings that are
inherently sustainable.” [4] !
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Four levels for green building certification
LEED-ND v4:
1. Certified: 40 to 49 points.
2. Silver: 50 to 59 points.
3. Gold: 60 to 79 points.
4. Platinum: 80 to 110 points.
Projects are rated based on credit points
accumulated according to their performance in
the next eight rating category elements.
1. Location and Transportation:
to encourage
communities to consider location,
transportation alternatives, and preservation
of sensitive lands while also discouraging
sprawl.
2. Sustainable Sites: to reduce pollution from
construction activities controlling soil
erosion, waterway sedimentation, and air
dust. And to ensure that the site is assessed to
environmental contamination.
3. Water Efficiency: to reduce water
consumption and to support water
management and identify opportunities for
additional water saving.
4. Energy & Atmosphere: to support the design,
construction, and eventual operation of a
project that meets the owner’s project
requirements for energy, water, indoor
environmental quality, and durability.
5. Materials & Resources: to reduce
construction and demolition waste disposed
of in landfills and incineration facilities by
recovering, reusing, and recycling materials.
6. Indoor Environmental Quality: to contribute
to the comfort and well-being of building
occupants by establishing minimum
standards for indoor air quality.
7. Innovation & Design Process: recognizes
exemplary and innovative performance
reaching beyond the existing credits in the
rating system, as well as the value of
including an accredited professional on the
design team.
8. Regional Priority: encourages projects to
focus on earning credits of particular
significance to the project’s local
environment.
2.2 GPRS (Green pyramid rating system)
Egyptian stakeholders and government officials
have looked for methods to reduce power
consumption and Green House Gases emissions
(GHG).
Egypt green building council has commissioned
to define the framework of a rating system and a
national committee has been formed to review and
ultimately approve the Green Pyramid Rating
System completed and took place 2010.
Recognizing the unique ecological, industrial and
social challenges of the region, the rating system
will help to define what constitutes an “Egyptian
Green Building”. [5]
Four levels for green pyramid certification:
1. Certified: 40 to 49 credits.
2. Silver Pyramid: 50 to 49 credits.
3. Golden Pyramid: 60 to 79 credits.
4. Green Pyramid: 80 credits and above.
Projects are rated based on credit points
accumulated according to their performance in
the next seven rating category elements.
1. Sustainable Sites Development: to avoid
projects which have negative impact on
historical and protected areas and the
redevelopment in informal areas, also to
minimize the negative environmental
impact of the project on its surrounding.
2. Water Saving: to develop and implement a
comprehensive water strategy.
3. Energy Efficiency and Environment: to
reduce energy consumption and carbon
emission by incorporating passive design
strategy.
4. Materials Selection and Construction
System: to enable the use of renewable,
recycled, highly efficient, and local
materials and avoid wastage.
5. Indoor Environmental Quality: to promote
thermal, visual and acoustic comfort for
occupants.
6. Innovation and Design Process: mix design
reflecting national and regional cultural
heritage value wile contributing to
environmental performance of the building.
7. Recycling of Solid Waste: design initiatives
and construction practice, which have
significant measurable environmental
benefit. [6]
2.3 BREEAM (Building Research
Establishment's Environmental Assessment
Method).
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Launched in 1990 by the Building Research
Establishm (BRE) and used across Europe. it is an
environmental assessment method and rating system
for buildings. It encourages designers, clients and
others to think about low carbon and low impact
design, minimizing the energy demands created by a
building before considering energy efficiency and
low carbon technologies[7].
A BREEAM assessment uses recognised
measures of performance, which are set against
established benchmarks, to evaluate a building’s
specification, design, construction and use. The
measures used represent a broad range of categories
and criteria from energy to ecology. They include
aspects related to energy and water use, the internal
environment (health and well-being), pollution,
transport, materials, waste, ecology and
management processes.
A certificated BREEAM assessment is delivered
by a licensed organisation, using assessors trained
under a UKAS accredited competent person
scheme, at various stages in a buildings life cycle.
This provides clients, developers, designers and
others with:
· market recognition for low environmental
impact buildings,
· confidence that tried and tested
environmental practice is incorporated in
the building,
· inspiration to find innovative solutions that
minimise the environmental impact,
· a benchmark that is higher than regulation,
· a system to help reduce running costs,
improve working and living environments,
· a standard that demonstrates progress
towards corporate and organisational
environmental objectives.
Five levels for BREEAM certification:
1. Pass: 25 to 40%
2. Good: 40 to 55 %
3. Very good: 55 to 70 %.
4. Excelent: 70 to 85 %.
5. Outsanding: 85% and above.
The following types of building can be assessed:
Under BREEAM 2011 New Construction
· Whole new buildings
· Major refurbishment of existing buildings
· New build extensions to existing buildings
· A combination of new build and existing
building refurbishment
Under BREEAM 2008
· Existing building fit outs – all building
services, finishes and fittings are assessed
Projects are rated based on credit points
accumulated according to their performance in
the next rating category elements: [8]
• Management: 12 %
• Health and wellbeing: 15 %
• Energy: 19 %
• Transport: 8 %
• Water: 6 %
• Materials: 12.5 %
• Waste: 7.5 %
• Land use and ecology: 10 %
• Pollution: 10 %
1. Management: deals with sustainable
procurement, responsible construction
practices, construction site impacts,
stakeholder participation (including
consultation with relevant parties,
accessible design, building user information
and post-occupancy evaluation), life-cycle
costing and service-life planning
2. Health and Wellbeing: deals with aspects
design that impact on the health or
wellbeing of building occupants, including
visual and thermal comfort, indoor air and
water quality, acoustic performance, and
providing low-risk, safe and secure access
to and use of buildings.
3. Energy: deals with the reduction of carbon
emissions, including the use of
energyefficient building services, plant and
equipment, low- or zero-carbon energy-
generating technologies, and the ability to
monitor energy use by sub-metering.
4. Transport: deals with access to adjacent
public transport networks and local
amenities, along with the provision of
information on travel options to building
occupants, the provision of cyclist facilities
and the limitation of car parking.
5. Water: deals with opportunities for reducing
water consumption through the use of
efficient sanitary ware, the reuse and
recycling of water, the provision of leak
detection and prevention of leaks,
monitoring controls and the provision of
water-efficient equipment.
6. Materials: considers the embodied life-cycle
environmental impacts of materials, the use
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of responsibly sourced materials and the
robustness of the building fabric.
7. Waste: deals with reducing construction
waste, the possible use of recycled
aggregates, the provision of space to
encourage operational recycling and
encouraging the specification of finishes by
the building’s occupants.
8. Land Use and Ecology: considers the
environmental impact of site selection
including its ecological value and the
protection of existing ecological features,
mitigating the impact on and enhancing the
ecological value of a site and limiting any
long-term impacts on a site’s biodiversity.
9. Pollution: deals with the impacts of
refrigerants and nitrous oxide emissions, the
impacts of surface water run-off from a site
and the impact of light and noise pollution
on neighbours.
10. Innovation: introduced additional credits
that could be awarded in recognition of
achieving either exemplary levels of
performance in certain Issues or for
incorporating innovative sustainability
solutions within a building’s design.
2.4 CASBEE (Comprehensive Assessment
System for building Environmental
efficiency). [9]
CASBEE system was developed in japan, beginning
in 2001. The family assessment tools is based on the
building's life cycle: pre-design, new construction,
existing building and renovation. It presents a new
concept of assessment that distinguishes
environmental load from quality of building
performance. By relating these two factors
CASBEE results are presente as a measure of eco-
efficiency or BEE ( building environmental
efficiency). Results are plotted on a graph, with
environmental load on one axis and quality on the
other, the best buildings will fall in the section
representing lowest environmental load and highest
quality. Scores are given based on the scoring
criteria for each assessment item.
A five-level scoring system is used:
• C: BEE of 0 to 0.49
• B-: BEE of 0.5 to 0.99
• B+: BEE of 1 to 1.49
• A: BEE of 1.5 to 2.99
• S: BEE of more then 3.0
Different types of assessments:
· CASBEE for New Construction
· CASBEE for Existing Building
· CASBEE for Renovation
· CASBEE for Heat Island
· CASBEE for Urban Development
· CASBEE for an Urban Area + Buildings
· CASBEE for Cities
· CASBEE for Home (Detached House)
· CASBEE for Market Promotion
· CASBEE Property Appraisal
Four basic assessment tools:
· CASBEE for Pre-design - CASBEE-PD:
aims to assist the owner, planner and others
involved in the planning (pre-design) stage
of the project. It can be used to assist in
grasping issues such as the basic
environmental impact of the project, in
selecting a suitable site, and to evaluate the
environmental performance of the project in
the pre-design stage.
· CASBEE for New Construction - CASBEE-
NC: is used by architects and engineers to
increase the BEE value of a building during
the design process. This can be used as a
design support tool as well as a self check
list. This tool, formerly named DfE (Design
for Environment) tool, makes assessments
based on the design specifications and the
anticipated performance.
· CASBEE for Existing Buildings -
CASBEE-EB: targets existing building
stock, based on operation records for at least
one year after completion. The tool was also
developed to be applicable to asset
assessment. It can be used as a labelling tool
to declare the environmental performance of
buildings. CASBEE-EB is also utilized to
support building maintenance. Building
owners, such as the real estate sector and
large enterprises, may use it as a self-
evaluation tool for midterm and long-term
management plans.
· CASBEE for Renovation - CASBEE-RN: is
designed to evaluate the performances of
existing buildings based on predicted
performance and specifications with
renovation. CASBEE-RN may also assess
improvement of specific performance in
relation to the purpose of the renovation.
[10]
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Two Categories of Assessment: Q and L
1. Q (Quality): Built Environment Quality:
Evaluates improvement in living amenity for the
building users, within the hypothetical enclosed
space (the private property).
• Q1 - indoor environment
• Q2 - quality of service
• Q3 - outdoor environment on site
2. L (Load): Built Environment Load: Evaluates
negative aspects of environmental impact which
go beyond the hypothetical enclosed space to
the outside (the public property).
• L1 - Energy
• L2 - resources and materials
• L3 - off-site environment
4 Conclusion
This research indicates that these tools can each
play a valuable role in encouraging higher-
performing buildings, but there is no presence of a
special tools concerning historic or heritage building
which can cause confusion in the market.
The global principles of green architecture such
as energy conservation and climate adaptation,
planning a sustainable building site, economizing
water consumption, efficient use of construction
materials, indoor environment quality, recycling
solid waste, design and innovation and respect of
users. [11]
Building activities are one of human’s most
influential activities on natural resources and the
environment. Scientific development philosophy
must be steadily created and seriously implemented,
and the concept of sustainable development must be
adhered to, to strongly develop green buildings.
When developing green buildings, state technologic
and economic policies that save resources and
protect environment shall be implemented and
performed. The purpose of formulating this standard
is to regulate evaluation on green buildings and
promote the development of green buildings.
Due to different functions, different types of
buildings have big discrepancy in terms of resource
consumption and effect on environment.
Considering current construction market, this
standard will mainly evaluate residential buildings
that are huge in quantities and public buildings that
consume much energy and resources, like office
buildings, mall buildings and hotel buildings. But
for evaluation on historic buildings, this standard
can serve as reference. So there is a need of a
balanced system concerning just the historic
building with their value and its major impact on the
social and economic aspect of the country.
There is huge difference in climate, geographic
environment, natural resources, economic
development and social customs in different
regions, so in evaluation of green buildings,
differently regions shall be viewed respectively,
taking regional specialties into consideration based
on fact, and the climate, resources, natural
environment, economy and culture of the region
where the building locates shall be fully considered.
Laws, regulations, and related standards in
accordance with state requirement are prerequisite
for historic green building evaluation. [12]
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GREEN BUILDING FACTORS
Location and Transportation
Sustainable Site
Water Efficiency
Energy and Atmosphere
Materials and Resource
Indoor Environmental Quality
Innovation in design
Regional Priority
Recycling of solid waste
Green infrastructure
Political
x
Legal
x
x
x
x
x
Socio-cultural
x
x
x
x
Economic
x
x
x
x
x
Environmental
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
Organizational capacity
x
x
x
Educational
x
x
x
Neighborhood revitalization
x
x
x
x
x
Historic preservation factors
Construction documents
x
x
Table 2: relation between historic building factors and green building factors, by the researcher. [13]
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<http://www.ibec.or.jp>
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Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0
(Attribution 4.0 International, CC BY 4.0)
This article is published under the terms of the Creative
Commons Attribution License 4.0
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