In the world of construction, you may have heard of BREEAM, but how does it work and what does it mean? BREEAM stands for Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method.

BREEAM is an international scheme and offers third-party certification from independent bodies that assess the sustainability performance of infrastructure, buildings and the community.

The form of assessment and certification takes place at a number of different stages in the life cycle of a building project, from the initial design stage to construction, operation, and even repair.

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Experts are used to carry out assessments that involve checking various building elements to ensure that they meet the quality and performance standards set by the scheme. The certification body has government approval to issue certifications for services, products, and systems. There are a number of national operator schemes that act as certification bodies for BREEAM.

So, how does the BREEAM ranking system work?

The main result of the BREEAM rating is the rating score. Certified ratings detail the level of performance achieved by a project, and are measured based on a set of guidelines, standards and benchmarks. The ranking system is used to compare projects and aims to offer a guarantee to the public that the project offers great quality and value.  Find Building Services Manchester who have achieved this certification with https://www.piggottandwhitfield.co.uk/building-services/

Ranking ranges from Acceptable to Graduated, then Good, Very Good and Extraordinary. The score is reflected in the number of stars shown on the BREEAM certificate.

BREEAM category

This system measures the sustainability of various different categories whether that’s energy or ecology, with each section focusing on the most important factors, such as carbon emissions, low impact on nature, levels of durability, climate change response, and protection of biodiversity, for example. These categories are:

Energy

Health and well-being

Innovation

Land use

Material

Management

Pollution

Transport

Waste

Water

The categories above are divided into fields of further assessment, with their respective targets, objectives and guidelines. When the evidence shows that the benchmarks have been met by the BREEAM assessor, a point score is given called credit. The overall category score is then decided by adding credit from each sub-section and overall category weights. When all assessments have been completed, the final ranking is given from the number of various categories with different weights.

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Assessments are being carried out according to the BREEAM scheme and they depend on evidence to decide whether compliance with relevant guidelines has been met. Evidence is usually related to certain developments, such as extensions, buildings or repairs, for example.