Support to the Renovation Wave:
Deep Energy Renovation of Historic Buildings in State Care in Ireland
Proposal number: PF00151
Proposal acronym: Renovation Wave
Duration: 26 months (January 2023 – February 2025)
Total Project Budget: €556,400.00 TUS Project Budget: €93,799.50
Type of Model Grant Agreement: Service Contract Tender
Summary:
The specific objective of this service contract is to assist national authorities in improving their capacity to design, develop and implement reforms relating to the renovation of historic buildings, including protected buildings. The study involves the support of the Office of Public Works (OPW) and Limerick City and County Council (LCCC) to achieve the outcomes of a) adopting methodologies/guidelines for the acceleration of historic building renovations, b) strengthening the capacity for retrofitting historic buildings, and c) establishing a sustainable local/regional investment fund. To achieve those, the study will provide:
1) case studies and upgrade of methodology for deep renovation of historic buildings;
2) cost-benefit analysis for deep-retrofitting historic structures;
3) training programme and material;
4) guidelines for the establishment of a sustainable local/regional investment fund for the renovation of historic buildings.
At the end of 2019, the European Commission introduced the European Green Deal, targeting climate neutrality by 2050. As buildings contribute 40% of the EU’s energy consumption and 35% of its emissions, their decarbonization is essential. As part of the plan to achieve these ambitions, the Renovation Wave Strategy proposed by the European Commission aims to double the annual energy renovation rate and promote deep renovations to improve energy and resource efficiency over the next decade. Retrofitting traditional and historic buildings is more complex than modern buildings due to several factors: heritage value must be preserved, hygrothermal risks managed, and suitable low-carbon insulation materials, often unsupported by grants, should be prioritized. Additionally, there is a shortage of skilled workers, requiring widespread knowledge dissemination and upskilling across the sector.
This study will develop four case studies on energy upgrades for various types of historic public sector buildings, including protected structures, to provide practical examples of traditional building renovations for the OPW and private practitioners. A holistic cost-benefit analysis will also be conducted as part of this study to demonstrate the value of energy-efficient renovations. A training program will be created to ensure knowledge transfer among stakeholders involved in the renovation of traditional buildings. Finally, guidelines will be produced to support the establishment of a sustainable investment mechanism for the renovation of historic buildings at the local/regional level in Ireland and to provide guidelines for local/regional authorities.
The training event will be held over three days, [17th January, 7th February, and 25th February 2025] at Dublin Castle, to upskill the OPW architects, engineers, surveyors and building works specifiers, government departments, local authority officials, and private expert organizations. Upon completion of the course, the 150 in-person participants and 200 online participants from the architecture, engineering,g and surveying professions, will be better equipped to support the Government in meeting its ambitious targets as set out in its National Renovation Strategy.
Partners:
The consortium combines the expertise of Trinomics with that of Technological University of the Shannon: Midlands Midwest, Shaffrey Architects, and Passivate Building Energy Consulting.
Beneficiaries are Office of Public Works and Limerick City County Council.
TUS Activities (SDRI):
TUS will work on the deliverable 3 cost-benefit analysis for energy efficiency renovation of historic structures, specifically on the Limerick case study in collaboration with Limerick City and County Council. TUS will lead the deliverable 4 training and dissemination activities in collaboration with the OPW.
For further information:
- Project Officer: Elisabeth O’ Brien. Email: elisabeth.obrien@tus.ie
- Project Researcher: Stephanie Moore. Email: stephanie.moore@tus.ie