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BPIE: Europe's buildings under the microscope - PU Europe

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A. building typology<br />

From large commercial offices to terraced single family houses, <strong>buildings</strong> in <strong>Europe</strong> vary remarkably in terms<br />

of <strong>the</strong>ir function type. They can be broadly divided into residential and non-residential sectors where each<br />

sector alone consists of multiple types – e.g. in Germany <strong>the</strong>re are 44 reported types 7 within <strong>the</strong> residential<br />

sector alone.<br />

For <strong>the</strong> countries covered by this study 8 , it is estimated that <strong>the</strong>re are 25 billion m 2 of useful floor space, a<br />

figure that, it has been reported, is increasing at a rate of around 1% per year. To illustrate what this figure<br />

means in comparative terms, all EU <strong>buildings</strong> in terms of <strong>the</strong>ir gross floor space can be currently concentrated<br />

in a land area equivalent to that of Belgium (30,528 km 2 ). In comparison to China and <strong>the</strong> US, <strong>Europe</strong> has <strong>the</strong><br />

highest ‘building density’ (building floor space over land area) followed by China and <strong>the</strong>n US. Floor space<br />

trends can be linked to a number of factors such as wealth conditions, culture and land availability. These<br />

factors can explain <strong>the</strong> significant differences between <strong>Europe</strong>, US and China where floor space per capita<br />

are around 48, 81 and 26 m 2 , respectively. Within <strong>Europe</strong>, differences also exist from country to country.<br />

The general tendency is to seek larger floor spaces over time, especially <strong>under</strong> favourable economic<br />

conditions. With increasing trends in floor space, <strong>the</strong> energy demand associated with our <strong>buildings</strong> is also<br />

increasing, which in turn highlights <strong>the</strong> need for improving <strong>the</strong> energy efficiency of our current stock,<br />

especially that of older stock.<br />

Improving <strong>the</strong> energy efficiency of our <strong>buildings</strong> not only reduces energy consumption and subsequently<br />

energy bills but also improves <strong>the</strong> aes<strong>the</strong>tics of a building, increases <strong>the</strong> value of <strong>the</strong> asset and provides<br />

healthier conditions for <strong>the</strong> occupants.<br />

Figure 1A1 – Building gross floor space in <strong>the</strong> EU27, Switzerland and Norway<br />

Sources: Population figures: World Bank, Eurostat. Floor spaces: EU27 - <strong>BPIE</strong> survey 2011, US - Annual Energy Outlook 2011 with projections to 2035 (US<br />

Energy Information Administration), China - Energy Efficiency in Buildings, Facts & Trends (WBCSD)<br />

Building gross floor space in <strong>the</strong> EU27,<br />

Switzerland and Norway<br />

bE<br />

Population (2010) Land area (km 2 ) Building Floor Space<br />

EU27 501 million 4,324,782 24 billion m 2<br />

US 309 million 9,826,675 25 billion m 2<br />

China 1338 million 9,598,080 35 billion m 2<br />

7<br />

Based on extensive database for <strong>the</strong> German residential stock classified by construction year and building size published by IWU (Institut Wohnen<br />

und Umwelt - Institute of Housing and Environment).<br />

8<br />

Focus countries are: EU27, Norway and Switzerland. Based on estimations through <strong>the</strong> <strong>BPIE</strong> survey for which 92% of floor area was reported.<br />

The EU27 useful floor area is 24 billion m 2 .<br />

<strong>Europe</strong>’s <strong>buildings</strong> <strong>under</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>microscope</strong> | 27

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