BESS Report

BESS | BESS Certificate | BESS Assessment

Are you looking for a BESS certificate for your next project?

Here at Certified Energy we take pride in helping our clients and their projects reach their full potential in order to ensure maximum savings and minimum energy use, allowing for cost effective yet sustainable solutions. Our specialists can ensure that you achieve the highest possible scores on your BESS assessment. For more information about BESS please read the detailed description below, or call us at 1300 443 674, our dedicated staff will be happy to help in any way possible.

What is a BESS certificate?

The Built Environment Sustainability Scorecard (BESS) is an online assessment tool which can be used to create Sustainable Design Assessment (SDA) reports or Sustainability Management Plans (SMP) for development projects in Victoria.BESS is fast becoming the Victorian equivalent of BASIX in New South Wales as more local councils begin to require ESD assessments at the planning permit stage of the development cycle. There are currently 17 councils in Victoria that are implementing BESS with more Victorian councils expected to follow in 2016/17. BESS has been seen by many as a bottom up approach to managing ESD principles in design and development as the push for sustainability has come from the local councils in contrast to the State government, like NSW which has legislation enforcing the scheme.

Recently BESS has replaced two previous tools that supported the Sustainable Design Assessment in the Planning Process (SDAPP) in the past 10 years. Those being:

  • STEPS: originally developed by Moreland City Council to assess residential buildings
  • Sustainable Design Scorecard (SDS): originally developed by the City of Port Phillip to assess non-residential buildings.

 

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What is BESS?

The Built Environment Sustainability Scorecard (BESS) is an assessment tool used in the planning permit stage, which is designed to evaluate the following areas of a new building or alteration against set benchmarks:

  • Energy/Water Efficiency
  • Thermal Comfort
  • Overall Environmental Sustainability Performance

This tool aims to assist builders, developers and community members in showing how a proposed development design meets sustainable design benchmarks and requirements. The BESS scorecard can provide input and guidance towards improving your home or development’s sustainability.

BESS can be used to assess:

  • Single Houses
  • Townhouse Developments
  • Apartment Buildings
  • Large non-residential or mixed use developments

BESS is used as an input for Sustainable Design Assessment (SDA) reports or Sustainability Management Plans (SMP) for development projects in Victoria quickly becoming the Victorian equivalent of BASIX in New South Wales. More local councils are beginning to require ESD assessments at the planning permit stage of the development cycle.

BESS was created by the Victorian Council Alliance for a Sustainable Built Environment (CASBE) to replace two existing tools that supported the Sustainable Design Assessment in the Planning Process (SDAPP):

  • STEPS (Sustainable Tools for Environmental Performance Strategy) for use with Residential building assessments
  • SDS (Sustainable Design Scorecard) for use with non-residential buildings

There are 9 categories that are assessed within the BESS tool, which are:

  • Management
  • Water
  • Energy
  • Stormwater
  • Indoor Environment Quality (IEQ)
  • Transport
  • Waste
  • Urban Ecology
  • Innovation

Minimum scores in mandatory categories (Energy, Water, Stormwater, IEQ) along with an overall score of 50% is required to pass.

When is a BESS certificate required?

The BESS system supports the ‘Sustainable Design Assessment in the Planning Process’. For many councils in Victoria, applicants for planning permits are required to submit information about how their proposed development intends to be sustainable and meet certain targets, either as a Sustainable Design Assessment (SDA, for small scale developments) or Sustainability Management Plan (SMP, for large scale developments).

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What are the requirements of a BESS certificate?

Through BESS the water and energy efficiency, thermal comfort, and overall environmental sustainability performance of a proposed new building or alteration are assessed. This regulatory body was implemented to assist builders and developers, to ensure that they demonstrate that they meet sustainability requirements as part of a planning permit application. The requirements being to meet certain energy consumption targets to reduce the overall energy consumption of the state and the country.

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How is BESS assessed?

Much the same as BASIX, BESS is accessed through the use of a comprehensive online assessment tool and through the use of thermal modelling to rate the energy efficiency and overall consumption of a proposed dwelling. Through the use of a comprehensive list of performance criteria those being management, energy, water, stormwater, IEQ, transport, waste, urban ecology and innovation, proposed dwellings must meet certain deemed to satisfy provisions to be approved during the DA stage.

How much does a BESS assessment cost?

The cost for BESS certification through a private certifier depends on the size and complexity of the project, depending on the amount of time that is required to fully model and assess the building. Therefore to get an obligation free quote for your project please press the button below or call us.

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