Cost and Carbon Tool

What this tool does

UCL has clear obligations to measure, monitor and report energy use and carbon emissions, and challenging targets to reduce them, as set out in our Carbon Management Plan.

This tool helps project managers, University Project Officers (UPOs) and consultants working with UCL to estimate and report on changes to energy consumption and carbon emissions as a result of improvements to, or expansion of, the estate’s built assets. The results are used to support the business case for investing in sustainable buildings, including the reduction of life cycle costs.

The outputs are collated by the UCL Sustainability Team to help plan and manage overall carbon emissions against the targets.

How to use this tool 

This tool can be used to capture payback periods, carbon, and energy performance data for simple upgrades through to major refurbishments and new buildings.

For smaller and simpler projects, the engines within the tool will help you to calculate energy savings and payback periods. You can compare different proposals and then select the best approach for your building. There is also the option to use the Bespoke Engine if you are doing something a bit different.

For complex projects, major refurbishments and new buildings, energy savings will need to be calculated outside this tool using conventional energy modelling tools for regulated and unregulated loads. The outputs can then be submitted through the Bespoke engine (Step 2). Estimates are required at RIBA stages 1, 2 and 3 in order to comply with UCL's guidance on sustainability for built environments.  

Document author Joanna-Marshall Cook

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