
Join building energy efficiency experts in Vienna for the 2023 edition of the TIMEPAC International Workshop to learn about the latest developments in energy performance certification.
Renovating Europe’s building stock is essential to help achieve a higher degree of energy efficiency and meet Europe’s clime goals. Enhancing energy performance certification is crucial in driving this renovation.
The TIMEPAC 2023 workshop offers researchers and professionals involved in the energy efficiency and assessment of buildings, the opportunity to share insights and outcomes regarding the anticipated changes in the energy performance certification within the context of the ongoing recast of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD).
It is also an excellent occasion to learn about the initial outcomes of the TIMEPAC project – now at the end of its second year of activity – and explore paths for future collaborations between participants.
We look forward to welcoming representatives from the private sector, public administration, academia, and research who are interested in the ongoing changes in building assessment and retrofitting, aligned with the goals of the European Green Deal.
The workshop is held on-site in English language and is Online accessible for remote audiences via live stream.
The 2023 edition of the TIMEPAC workshop will be structured in four sessions focusing on the following themes:

Using BIM for the EPC generation process
In this session, we will explore the procedures used to obtain data from Building Information Modeling (BIM) for Energy Performance Certification (EPC) generation, while also delving into the benefits of utilizing BIM for creating the EPC.

Integrating data sources in renovation roadmaps
This session explores the benefits of establishing linkages between Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs), energy audits, logbooks, and Building Renovation Passports (BRPs) and how it can impact cost savings and reliable decision-making.

Enhanced EPC - integrating additional indicators, SRI, and BRP
This session will discuss the advantages and challenges of integrating additional sustainability indicators such as IAQs and SRIs.

Supporting the Renovation Wave
In this session, we will aim to identify new approaches to identify and track the implementation of renovation measures, to ensure that decarbonisation the building stock is actually achieved.
Background
The EU Green Deal and the amended Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) have prioritized the urgency of increasing building retrofitting rates. In this context, energy performance certification is expected to play a crucial role in the renovation of the European building stock.
The current Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) are inexpensive but often suffer from low data quality and a lack of sufficient customization to match the actual building conditions. Additionally, their 10 year validity period means they frequently fail to reflect the current status of the building. Overall, there is room for improvement in terms of market acceptance. There exists a clear trade-off between the cost of issuing a comprehensive and tailored EPC and customers’ willingness to pay for it. Lastly, professional certifiers need training in methods and tools that enable them to deliver accurate and reliable certificates.
Nowadays, there are number of EU research projects which are working to improve existing energy certification processes by moving from single, static certification to more holistic and dynamic approaches. This workshop provides an opportunity to exchange the results of these projects and continue progressing towards more effective building certification processes.
Call for Abstracts
Abstracts must indicate the session number and title, and answer the questions listed for each session. Maximum length is 300 words, deadline for submission is 29 September 2023.
For presenters, in-person attendance to the workshop is required.
All fields are mandatory
Abstract guidelines
Using BIM for the EPC generation process
Motivation: Building Information Modelling (BIM) and other collaborative approaches offer opportunities to streamline building processes and facilitate data sharing. Once the process and IT infrastructure are established, there is potential to save time and effort. This eliminates the need for multiple data collection exercises, as information can be efficiently shared among stakeholders.
Questions to be addressed in the presentations:
- Which procedures have you been using to obtain data from BIM for EPC generation?
- Which were the benefits of using BIM to create the EPC?
- Which was the impact on cost and reliability of the resulting EPC?
- What would be required to make the procedures effective in practice?
Discussion round: Which challenges remain? What is still needed to solve them?
Integrating data sources in renovation roadmaps
Motivation: Renovations often occur gradually, rather than all at once, allowing repairs to be coupled with energy efficiency improvements and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction measures. Consequently, different professional groups interact with the same building at different times, collecting and generating information that is dispersed across various locations. This fragmentation hampers the seamless integration of data and the holistic evaluation of buildings for optimal decision-making in building renovation projects. The building logbook and the linkage of different data sources and documents can provide a solution.
Questions to be addressed in the presentations:
- What benefits have you identified from establishing a linkage between, for example, Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs), energy audits, logbooks, and Building Renovation Passports (BRPs)?
- How have you addressed the establishment of such linkages in your activity?
- What is the impact on cost and reliability of information resulting from this interlinking of data/documents?
- What would be needed to make these procedures effective in practice?
Discussion round: Which challenges remain? What is still needed to solve them?
Enhanced EPC – integrating additional indicators, SRI, and BRP
Motivation: Voluntary Sustainable Building Assessment and Certification Schemes have been developed and implemented in most European Member States. With the development of Level(s) which is the sustainable building assessment scheme of the European Commission, the use of sustainability indicators is gaining importance. There are good reasons for adding additional information to the EPC, such as striking a balance between energy efficiency and indoor air quality (IAQ) by integrating an IAQ indicator. In this context, occupant health and comfort play a major role, which in turn is also important in the Smart Readiness Indicator (SRI).
Questions to be addressed in the presentations:
- Which additional indicators have you identified in your project, and what are the advantages?
- How have you integrated them with the EPC?
- What is the impact on cost and reliability of information of the overall building performance?
- What would be needed to make these procedures effective in practice?
Discussion round: Which challenges remain? What is still needed to solve them?
Supporting the Renovation Wave
Motivation: The successful implementation of the Renovation Wave requires the availability of continuously updated information about buildings over time. Energy performance certificate databases have been accumulating valuable information for many years, serving as a valuable resource for renovation planning, policy-making, and evaluation. However, challenges persist. The building stock is not uniformly covered by EPCs, and the reliability of data quality often remains a concern. Nevertheless, ongoing efforts to address these issues demonstrate that it is feasible to utilize EPC data for large-scale renovation planning, policy-making, and evaluation.
Questions to be addressed in the presentations:
- What impact does the utilization of EPC databases have on the reliability and efficiency of renovation measures?
- How do you utilize EPC databases to develop building renovation plans?
- Which approaches have you identified to track the implementation of renovation measures, to ensure that decarbonisation of the building stock is actually achieved?
- What would be needed to make these procedures effective in practice?
Discussion round: Which challenges remain? What is still needed to solve them?