Buildings and Energy
With relation to space heating, the Government of Ireland has mandated that all public sector bodies must continue to lead by example in lowering energy consumption and costs by implementing the mandatory requirements as listed below.
- Establish maximum period for heating, air conditioning and all utilities.
- Switch off heating and utilities during out-of-hours periods.
- Requirement for internal space heating temperature of all public buildings to be consistent with the minimum recommended temperatures for heating, as set out in the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE) guidelines. In most (though not all) cases, this will be 19 degrees.
- Requirement to shut off all heat in office buildings at least 1-2 hours before the buildings close.
- Optimise water heating to save energy.
TU Dublin's building stock currently includes 194,429 m² in 45 buildings across our campuses. Campus & Estates teams work with a contrasting range of buildings. Some buildings are very old and others are more modern and sophisticated in their design and servicing. Maintaining the very highest level of energy efficiency is an important consideration in the delivery of all campus services. To meet the our mandatory requirements for space and water heating, our systems operate to scheduled times at different buildings. For example, more modern buildings retain heat better, so radiators boost at specific times rather than run all day. In less efficient buildings radiators may run longer to maintain the 19 degrees standard.