Knowledgebase
The simplification of guidance (paragraph 4.08 Issue 7 NDEPC
Conventions) from the NDEPC Conventions Group has instigated a review
of our guidance on this. The guidance here is intended to provide
improved modelling but does not replace the guidance given...
The advice in the article is for meeting the following extract of
convention 6.06. There is separate advice for SBEM and DSM
_Where the DHW serves multiple buildings, the losses should be
apportioned between those buildings based on floor area.__If the
l...
The procedure for producing the potential rating for a buildings EPC
can be flexible and fit in with your workflow. The process of
identifying suitable recommendations for the building and the
Potential rating are directly related and so it makes sense to...
If you get the error message while running SBEM "_THERE IS A PROBLEM
WITH THE ADOBE READER (507.507 OR 523.523)_", then this is an issue
with the Adobe reader being set in protected mode.
To fix the problem you will need to turn this feature off followi...
You will see this error when SBEM encounters a problem in processing
the calculation data. The cause of the error will not be reported in
Errors and warnings.
Historically there have been many causes for this error. This article
will not list existing his...
This feature was introduced for Scottish Section 63 assessments but
can be used to extract any DesignBuilder model from an XML generated
using DesignBuilder.
This requires the user to download the XML and save it to their
system. Note also that DesignBui...
This information is relevant for lodgements in England and Wales
(Scotland, Northern Ireland, Eire?)
.
Landmark requires address details in the following format
The address lines need to be input precisely as they appear in Model
Options
1. Once your CIBSE weather file order has been paid for you should
receive an email with a link to a page on our website which allows you
to download the weather data.
2. The file you download will be compressed in .zip format. You should
unzip the file ...
This article has been produced specifically for SBEM 5.5.h /
DesignBuilder 6.1. It may be updated a number of times during 2019 so
please check for updates.
Please check our approvals page for BER/BRIRL approval status.
GENERAL NOTES FOR NEW AND EXISTIN...
DesignBuilder cannot assign more than one partition construction to a
single internal wall plane. This behaviour can cause issues for cases
when there is more than one partition type on a single plane.
This could for example be a "heavy partition" at grou...
These instructions apply to DesignBuilder version 5.
A Section 6 2002 calculation is part of the assessment process for
identifying if a building requires a Section 63 analysis and is
performed during the EPC calculation.
The status of the check
BER < ...
These instructions apply to DesignBuilder v5 software. Later versions
may not need the steps outlined here.
SBEM produces two types of Data Reflection Report. These are presented
and formatted differently:
1. PDF format: this is the later format and ...
At the beginning of 2017 the security certificate for SBEM v3.5b
expired so any communication between SBEM and the registry gets
rejected.
BRE released a patch for SBEM that addresses this issue.
INSTALLATION NOTES FOR SBEM V3.5B PATCH:
1. Download the...
USING THE CORRECT COMBINATION OF DESIGNBUILDER VERSION AND SBEM
VERSION.
DesignBuilder approvals are given for specific combinations of
DesignBuilder and SBEM and XMLs will not be generated with an
incorrect version. This can be followed by an SBEM expi...
EPCS
Once a particular building, defined by its UPRN, has had
an EPC calculation performed, a credit is deducted from your
account. The system deducts a credit each time you enter a new UPRN
and run an EPC calculation, so if you are unsure of this inform...
USING THE CORRECT COMBINATION OF DESIGNBUILDER VERSION AND SBEM
VERSION.
DesignBuilder approvals are given for specific combinations of
DesignBuilder and SBEM and XMLs will not be generated with an
incorrect version. When importing an existing model int...
RECOMMENDATIONS
In the v4.7 release there have been two problems with recommendations.
* Any editing of the automatically generated recommendations and the
creation/editing of user recommendations will be lost if there is ANY
(apart from further rec...
LIGHT TYPES
Some light types are not available for Industrial type activities.
This problem has been reported by a number of assessors. The types not
available through the interface are Tungsten and LED. This bug has
been fixed ready for the next releas...
Models created using a copy of DesignBuilder which has only a PAYG
SBEM license must have a credit deducted for the model before being
usable with an annual Certification license. If you see a message
saying:
_This building was created using an EPC pay a...
First check that your building has sufficient hot water demand to make the incorporation of a solar hot water system worthwhile. Also, the solar characteristics need to be carefully set. Forced circulation will increase the auxiliary contribution and addi...
Sub-addresses can be added through your accreditation schemes' website rather than in DesignBuilder. When searching for an address to get the UPRN, there should be an option to add a sub-address. Doing that changes the last digit of the UPRN from a 0 to a...
The XML file required for EPC lodgement is generated by EPCGen when
DesignBuilder runs SBEM.
Please also see knowledgebase article XML not generated when model
loaded into latest approved interface
[http://support.designbuilder.co.uk/staff/index.php?/Kn...
SBEM rounds all reported zone general lighting wattages to the nearest 50W and thus any zones with installed lighting power below 25W will be rounded down to zero. Note that for calculations SBEM will use the unrounded wattage.
The usual reason for the 'total useful floor area' being reported smaller than the areas input is that blocks have been drawn using internal measurements without accounting for the fact that blocks should be drawn using external measurements. If you are u...
We have received this answer from BRE support summarising the reasons
for differences in SBEM 4 and SBEM 3.5 results:
"While the methodology for calculating the asset rating has not
changed in the 2010 NCM Modelling Guide (compared to the 2006 Guide),
pl...
The version of DesignBuilder SBEM to use depends on the region you are targetting and whether you are producing building regulations compliance reports or EPCs/BERs:England and Wales EPCs: DesignBuilder v2.4.2 with SBEM 4.1 Part-L2: DesignBuilder ...
There is a bug with SBEM 3.5.b which causes recommendations to be repeated in the report that is directly generated by SBEM and unfortunately there is nothing we can do about it until the next SBEM is released. However you should find that the final rec...
SBEM v3.5.b and later used in DesignBuilder includes a security
function for EPCs in England and Wales requiring final certificates to
be obtained from the Landmark database. EPCs displayed within
DesignBuilder (and all other SBEM software) will always in...
No, DesignBuilder communicates directly with the SBEM calculation
engine and cannot export NCT format files.
The 'main heating fuel' reported at the bottom of the EPC is
determined by SBEM as either the heating fuel or the hot water fuel
depending on which of these 2 systems consumes more energy. In some
buildings, fuel consumption due to hot water generation is...
Ground floor U-values used in constructions adjacent to ground can either be entered as being corrected for 3-D conduction effects or not and the setting to define whether the U-value is corrected or not is set on the Constructions dialog for ground floor...
Vehicle access (and other constructions) will only be shown under Criterion 2 of the BRUKL report if they are positioned in condirioned zones, i.e. zones that are heated.
SBEM always generates the secondary recommendations report with a watermark as it is not part of the official documentation. This is the same behaviour as iSBEM.
This data corresponds to the 'Rating with Improvements' data entered on the calculation options dialog. To obtain this data you should copy the actual model (to a different dsb file) apply the recommendations, note the rating with these measures applied t...
SBEM has an upper limit on the number of surfaces it can handle and
this limit can be exceeded for very large buildings. To help get round
this problem you can use the option 'Lump similar partitions' found on
the Advanced tab of the Model options dialog....
SBEM 3.3.b now allows some domestic activities in predominantly non-domestic buildings such as flats above pubs. This is first implemented in DesignBuilder v.1.9.2. For earlier versions the comment from BRE applies:"SBEM can currently be used for non...
Note from BRE:"The recommendations in the Recommendations Report are grouped into the following sub-sections: short payback (up to 15 recommendations), medium payback (up to 10 recommendations), long payback (up to 5 recommendations), and other recom...
When to use 'Semi-exterior unconditioned' zones
The zone type should be set to 'Semi-exterior unconditioned' when the
zone is unheated, uncooled, unoccupied and there is no significant
energy consuming equipment. Examples include unoccupied roofspaces,...
The failure is probably caused by a heated zone being adjacent to an
unheated zone and the partition (wall or internal floor/ceiling)
construction between them is uninsulated. To fix the problem either
insulate the partition between the heated and unheate...
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