Widespread Inefficiency across Commercial Building Stock

New research by Demand Logic and Urban Neutral has revealed a concerning level of inefficiency in operational performance across UK commercial buildings

The report reveals that in central London offices alone, annual economic returns of over £1.4bn could be achieved, alongside substantial carbon reductions by improving building operational performance.

Mike Darby, chief executive and co-founder of Demand Logic, told Property Week the analysis has uncovered consistent and widespread inefficiency and dysfunction across the UK’s commercial building stock.

“We started because we were aware buildings are haemorrhaging energy, and we believe these latest figures are conservative and extremely defensible,” he says. “The opportunity is real and the scale of this is real.”

“These are insanities, for example the horrible amount of heating being used during the heatwaves of this summer,” he added. “The vast majority are fixable out of opex, the potential for buildings to perform better is immense and the tools to achieve it already exist.”

The research shows the problem is “more endemic that you might like to think”, resulting in a £340m energy-saving opportunity within central London’s office buildings, totalling 286m sq ft.

Luke Graham, co-founder and partner at Urban Neutral, says: “The implications of this performance data are far wider and deeper than a lot of the industry realises; it could centrally drive asset value measurement, instead of relying on lagging market data.

“Looking through the international lens, the UK is effectively the golden standard for building performance. So there’s a big chasm across global building stock, and the impact of inefficiency is immeasurable. The opportunity globally is within the trillions of pounds.”

The full report can be found here