Our commercial building thermal imaging surveys are becoming more important as businesses work towards net zero carbon emissions. The BREEAM standard is perhaps the world-leading standard for sustainability in the built environment. We recognise that it is also a key element of certification in building thermal performance. Even without BREEAM, we have seen the UK government moving to impose stricter requirement on the energy performance of commercial properties, requiring commercial buildings to be EPC Grade B or above by 2030. Additionally, there are hefty fines anticipated for non-compliance.
Contact us now for full trained, professional thermographic surveys you can trust.
For us to fulfil the requirements of BREEAM, we need to ensure that the environmental conditions preceding a thermal imaging survey meet several criteria:
We understand that it is not always feasible to achieve perfect conditions, however we work with our clients closely in the days preceding the survey to ensure the best possible outcomes.
Our thermal imaging surveys are extremely useful tools for understanding the built environment. By observing the radiated heat from an object via aerial drone images or tripod-mounted images, it’s possible for us to see variations due to material type, temperature and underlying behaviour:
Classically, in our domestic thermal imaging surveys, variations in radiated heat can be due to thermal bridging. This is where unintentional conductive links between the external fabric of the building and the internal fabric create hot or cold spots depending on temperature difference between inside and out.
Where insulation is missing in a wall cavity, the air in the cavity acts to transfer heat from the inside to the exterior. This will show up on our thermal images as cold areas, even though the wall appears fine to the human eye. Likewise, missing, or incorrectly installed loft insulation will lead to tell-tale signatures in the thermal images.
We can also detect moisture ingress by thermal imaging. This is possible due to water having a greater capability to retain heat than the normally dry brick or plaster work. Additionally, in humid environments, poorly insulated or ventilated walls and ceilings can become damp, leading to mould growth.
Homes require adequate ventilation to ensure that moisture build-up is not excessive, as this can lead to damp and mould problems. Too much ventilation in winter however, can lead to excessive room cooling and your central heating system working excessively to replace the heat lost to the outside. Sources for draughts can be obvious, such as decaying door seals, or poorly fitting windows. However they can also be less obvious, such as air filtration behind plasterboard. In all these situations, our thermal imaging is an ideal method to locate and identify these issues.
"Global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from buildings were in 2019 at 12 GtCO2-eq, equivalent to 21% of global GHG emissions that year, out of which… 24% (were) direct emissions produced onsite." IPCC (2022) Climate Change 2022: Mitigation of Climate Change, Contribution of Working Group III, https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg3
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Communicating by phone or email, we work to understand your needs and requirements. From this we can provide you a detailed quote and scope for the survey. There’s no obligation after receipt of the quotation, and we don’t chase our potential clients. We will, however, always be at the end of a phone or email if you require further support (e.g. as part of a tender proposal).
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If you’re happy to proceed – great! We will then start with the more detailed planning; arranging with you site access, schedules and risk assessments as required. We will ask for a deposit to be paid at this stage (as detailed in the quote) to secure the booking.
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We usually insist on a preliminary daytime visit to the property. This is to ensure the time-critical thermal survey (undertaken at night) can be properly planned and any blocking issues, e.g. access or hazards, can be resolved in advance.
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This is the key phase. Working systematically around the property, we will record thermal images via aerial drone and/or tripod mounted camera, alongside temperature measurement data, to allow us to create the subsequent report. The duration of this will depend on property size, but expect as a minimum 2 hours to complete.
As thermal imaging surveys are very much weather-dependent, we will work with you to identify opportunities in your schedule to facilitate the survey. However we do ask for some degree of flexibility to re-arrange at short notice, should conditions not be ideal. This is critical for BREEAM, where a number of key conditions (temperature, humidity, wind speed) all dictate whether the associated survey will provide reliable data and can thus proceed.
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Depending on the size of the project, the report will usually follow within 2-3 weeks following the survey, once we’ve had time to properly process and analyse the data, and give your report the attention it requires.
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We share the same planet, so helping you address build performance and CO₂ footprint, helps us all. After you have the report, we’ll happily advise on build and insulation improvements where we can.
A commercial Thermal Imaging Survey Report will be accurate and fully comprehensive and include sufficient detail to correctly locate and identify potential faults, or otherwise confirm sound thermal performance.
Our thorough reports go above and beyond ‘standard reporting’ and are individually tailored to each property. We will include the following: