Minergie
Encyclopedia
MINERGIE is a registered quality label for new and refurbished low-energy-consumption
buildings. This label is mutually supported by the Swiss Confederation, the Swiss Cantons and the Principality of Liechtenstein
along with Trade and Industry. The label is registered in Switzerland and around the world and is thus protected against unlicensed use. The Minergie label may only be used for buildings, services and components that actually meet the Minergie standard.
Building to Minergie standards means providing high-grade, air-tight building envelopes and the continuous renewal of air in the building using an energy-efficient ventilation system. Specific energy consumption is used as the main indicator to quantify the required building quality. In this way, a reliable assessment can be assured. Only the final energy consumed is relevant.
At present around 13% of new buildings and 2% of refurbishment projects are Minergie certified. These are mostly residential buildings. The goals of the Swiss national SwissEnergy#Infrastructure and environment programme call for 20% of new construction and 5-10% of refurbishment projects to be Minergie certified.
The Minergie standard is somewhat comparable to German KfW40 (new buildings) and KfW60 (refurbishment) standards.
Mainly, Minergie recommends the construction of compact, well-insulated and air-tight buildings in order to attain good energy consumption standards. The buildings must be fitted with an automatic air-renewal system with heat recovery. A fee is charged for certification.
Depending on the building's category, various additional requirements are made: For single-family homes and apartment blocks, restaurants and indoor pools a ventilation system with heat recovery is compulsory.In this way, it can be guaranteed that Minergie buildings are not only energy-saving, but also are considered comfortable by their residents. For offices, schools and sales premises, an energy-efficient lighting concept according to the Swiss SIA 380/4 standard is prescribed.
Further, the following insulation
requirements must be met: For walls 0.2 W/m²K, for windows 1.3 W/m²K. A ventilation system with heat-recovery is also called for.
Low-energy house
A low-energy house is any type of house that from design, technologies and building products uses less energy, from any source, than a traditional or average contemporary house...
buildings. This label is mutually supported by the Swiss Confederation, the Swiss Cantons and the Principality of Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein
The Principality of Liechtenstein is a doubly landlocked alpine country in Central Europe, bordered by Switzerland to the west and south and by Austria to the east. Its area is just over , and it has an estimated population of 35,000. Its capital is Vaduz. The biggest town is Schaan...
along with Trade and Industry. The label is registered in Switzerland and around the world and is thus protected against unlicensed use. The Minergie label may only be used for buildings, services and components that actually meet the Minergie standard.
Building to Minergie standards means providing high-grade, air-tight building envelopes and the continuous renewal of air in the building using an energy-efficient ventilation system. Specific energy consumption is used as the main indicator to quantify the required building quality. In this way, a reliable assessment can be assured. Only the final energy consumed is relevant.
At present around 13% of new buildings and 2% of refurbishment projects are Minergie certified. These are mostly residential buildings. The goals of the Swiss national SwissEnergy#Infrastructure and environment programme call for 20% of new construction and 5-10% of refurbishment projects to be Minergie certified.
The Minergie standard is somewhat comparable to German KfW40 (new buildings) and KfW60 (refurbishment) standards.
History
The Minergie idea was developed in 1994 by Heinz Uebersax and Ruedi Kriesi, and the first two Minergie houses were realized in that same year. Minergie was registered as a trademark to prevent misuse. In 1997 it was acquired by the Swiss Cantons Zurich and Berne. In 1998 the present Minergie Association was founded, and its first standard, the Minergie label for low-energy-consumption buildings, was published. At the end of 2001, a further, more stringent standard for so-called passive housing was introduced, Minergie-P. Since then, further applications of the label have been defined, such as those for specific building components.Certification
Certification is done on the basis of planning values and thus offers no guarantee that these values are actually met. Research by the University of Applied Sciences, Business and Social Work in St. Gallen, Switzerland, has proven that refurbishment projects and single family homes are better than the standard. Larger residential buildings sometimes do not quite meet the standards.Mainly, Minergie recommends the construction of compact, well-insulated and air-tight buildings in order to attain good energy consumption standards. The buildings must be fitted with an automatic air-renewal system with heat recovery. A fee is charged for certification.
System Audit & Verification
For all categories of building except newly-built single-family homes the expected energy consumption per surface area must be declared and verified. For new single-family homes and apartment blocks 42 kWh/m².a must not be exceeded. For refurbishment projects the limiting value is 80 kWh/m². For reasons of simplicity, energy consumption for hot water preparation is included in these figures. For buildings at altitudes above 800 m, the limit values are increased.Depending on the building's category, various additional requirements are made: For single-family homes and apartment blocks, restaurants and indoor pools a ventilation system with heat recovery is compulsory.In this way, it can be guaranteed that Minergie buildings are not only energy-saving, but also are considered comfortable by their residents. For offices, schools and sales premises, an energy-efficient lighting concept according to the Swiss SIA 380/4 standard is prescribed.
Standard Solutions
Five simplified standard solutions are available for single-family homes. These are:- Heating and hot water preparation over the whole year using heat pumpHeat pumpA heat pump is a machine or device that effectively "moves" thermal energy from one location called the "source," which is at a lower temperature, to another location called the "sink" or "heat sink", which is at a higher temperature. An air conditioner is a particular type of heat pump, but the...
with a ground-probe as energy source - Wood-fired heating and hot-water preparation using solar collectorSolar collector-See also:*Solar thermal collector*Solar water heating*Solar air heating*Photovoltaic module*Renewable heat*Concentrating solar power...
s - Automatic pelletWood pelletsWood pellets are a type of wood fuel, generally made from compacted sawdust or other wastes from sawmilling and other wood products manufacture, but also sometimes from sources such as whole-tree removal or tree tops and branches leftover after logging and which otherwise help replenish soil...
-fired heating and hot-water preparation - Use of district heatingDistrict heatingDistrict heating is a system for distributing heat generated in a centralized location for residential and commercial heating requirements such as space heating and water heating...
with waste heatWaste heatWaste heat sometimes called Secondary heat or Low-grade heat refers to heat produced by machines, electrical equipment and industrial processes for which no useful application is found. Energy is often produced by a heat engine, running on a source of high-temperature heat... - Air-water heat-pump-based heating and hot water preparation.
Further, the following insulation
Building insulation
building insulation refers broadly to any object in a building used as insulation for any purpose. While the majority of insulation in buildings is for thermal purposes, the term also applies to acoustic insulation, fire insulation, and impact insulation...
requirements must be met: For walls 0.2 W/m²K, for windows 1.3 W/m²K. A ventilation system with heat-recovery is also called for.
External links
- Minergie International Website
- Minergie Congressional Briefing Addressing Climate Change with Energy Efficient Buildings: Best Practices from Switzerland