How retro-commissioning older Hong Kong buildings can improve energy efficiency, aid city’s decarbonisation efforts
- The city needs to train thousands of professionals to help buildings decarbonise, according to Hong Kong Green Building Council chairman Cheung Hau-wai
- The city needs 2,500 professionals to retro-commission electrical and mechanical equipment in buildings to improve their energy efficiency by 2035
Retro-commissioning helps to improve the energy efficiency of a building by identifying and undertaking operational improvements and improving the indoor environment, according to the HKGBC. The city has more than 42,000 buildings, of which around 8,000 are commercial buildings, according to the non-profit organisation.
“If every commercial building is retro-commissioned every three years, we need to build up the capacity of retro-commission professionals to 2,500 by 2035 to improve energy conservation in existing buildings,” said Cheung. There are currently only 500 such registered professionals, he added.
The government’s Electrical and Mechanical Services Department (EMSD) issued a guideline on retro-commissioning in 2018. The following year, the HKGBC launched a retro-commissioning training and registration scheme for technicians, engineers and technical executives, with support from the EMSD.
“There is huge potential for retro-commissioning in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area to improve energy efficiency in a large number of existing buildings,” said Cheung.
