BBA – The British Board of Agrement is the UK’s major approval body for construction products and installers. Their certificates are recognised as proof that the products covered by them have been thoroughly tested, will allow compliance with Building Regulations to be achieved and will last for a specified time period.

BRE – Building Research Establishment

BREEAM – BRE’s Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) is the worlds longest established and most widely used environmental assessment for buildings. Created by the BRE it has become the standard for measuring a buildings environmental performance.

Carbon Footprint - This is the measure (in units of carbon dioxide) that the impact of human activities has on the environment in terms of the amount of green house gases produced.

CERT - Carbon Emissions Reduction Target

Combined Heat & Power – Generating electricity plus energy for heating together at the same time.

DER – Dwelling Emission Rate is the actual emissions of a residential property once construction has been completed. This must be lower than the TER (Target Emission Rate) to obtain a SAP (Standard Assessment procedure) certificate.

DTI – Department of Trade and Industry

FITs – Feed in Tariff also known as Government Clean Energy Cash Back Scheme. Anyone generating up to 5 Megawatts of electricity is entitled to receive payments for every single unit of electricity produced. From 1 April 2010 the payments (which are tax free for individuals) are up to 41.3p per kwh generated using a solar PV system or 34.5p per kwh generated by wind turbines. There is also a payment of 3p per kwh for any surplus exported to the national grid applicable for both systems

Fossil Fuel – Mainly coal and oil that was produced naturally from decaying material from animals and plants which died many millions of years ago. It is widely accepted that these sources of energy will become depleted soon and more sustainable sources of power will need to be put in place.

FSC – Forestry Stewardship Council is the international organization that promotes responsible use and management of the world’s forests.

Green Roof – A roof completely or partly covered with soil, grass or another growing system planted over a waterproof cover to protect the building, very good for attracting birds and wildlife.

Greenhouse Gas – Various gases including carbon dioxide which contribute to the warming of the planet.

Grey Water – Usually rainwater treated and re-used in a home or business environment then used for flushing toilets, washing vehicles or watering gardens.

HVAC – Heating, ventilation and air conditioning.

K-value – K-value is given in relation to a product or materials thermal conductivity, the lower the value the better the item is at retaining heat.

Micro-generation – Power generated by equipment that produces less than 50kw of electricity. Usually with products such as solar PV panels, air and ground source heat pumps and wind turbines.

OSB – Oriented Strand Board similar to MDF and mainly used in SIPs construction.

R-value – This is used to indicate the level of thermal resistance in insulating products, the higher the number the better the insulation.

Renewable Energy – Energy produced from natural resources such as heat in the ground (geothermal), sunlight and wave and wind power.

SAP – Standard Assessment Procedure is the term given to assessing the energy performance of a newly built residential property.

SBEM – Simplified Building Energy Model is the term given to assessing the energy performance of a newly built commercial property.

Solar water heating – Systems that use heat from the sun to warm domestic hot water. A boiler is then used to make the water hotter and in times when solar energy is unavailable.

Solar PV – Systems that capture the suns energy using photovoltaic (PV) cells. These cells then convert the sunlight into electricity.

SIPs – Structured Insulated Panel System comprises rigid foam insulation sandwiched between two oriented strand boards to produce a highly insulated cost effective and sturdy building component. The panels which are manufactured off site  come in varying thickness and can be used for floors, roofs and walls on all types of commercial and domestic buildings.

SUDS – Sustainable Urban Drainage System relates to better control of water or storm water to reduce the likely hood of flooding in urban areas.

Sustainability - Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Sustainable Development – The Brundtland report states that this is “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”

U-value – This concept is used to measure heat loss through plane elements of the building shell or envelope. It is dependant on the thickness and thermal conductivity of its component layers.