• Programme aimed at improving energy efficiency of existing and new buildings; training programme to be held in partnership with the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy and Masdar of Abu Dhabi
• Registration open for Level 1 of the programme, which is based on the EmiratesGBC Technical Guidelines for Retrofitting Existing Buildings
• Flagship sustainable urban community Masdar City to host the first class of the programme

Dubai, UAE; July 18, 2017: Emirates Green Building Council (EmiratesGBC), an independent forum aimed at conserving the environment by strengthening and promoting green building practices, announced that its Building Retrofit Training (BRT) Programme will be launched in August.

Organised in partnership with the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy and Masdar (Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company), the BRT Programme starts on August 16, 2017, at Masdar City in Abu Dhabi, with the second workshop to be held at the EmiratesGBC office in Dubai on September 13.

The course is aimed at strengthening the efficiency of existing and new buildings in the UAE and bridging the knowledge-gap regarding best practices for retrofitting and building sector efficiency among all stakeholders in the industry.

Focused on knowledge sharing and strengthening awareness of green building best practices, the BRT Programme aims to support the vision of the UAE to drive sustainable development. It complements the ongoing efforts in the country to retrofit existing buildings to make them more energy efficient.

The programme offers training divided into two levels of curricula and caters to participants with varying levels of technical knowledge and experience. It includes Beginner Level One and Advanced Level Two, and provides detailed introduction and methodology for implementing 32 building retrofit methods in the UAE.

The programme has been structured based on the EmiratesGBC Technical Guidelines for Retrofitting Existing Buildings that is available in Arabic and English, and serves as a valuable handbook for all industry stakeholders to achieve higher levels of energy and water efficiency by retrofitting existing buildings.

Saeed Al Abbar, Chairman of EmiratesGBC, said: “The Building Retrofit Training Programme is the first of its kind in the region that focuses on strengthening awareness and the skillsets of building industry stakeholders to enhance the energy efficiency of their existing and new projects. The programme has been carefully created to address specific requirements of the region, and outlines actionable steps that can help achieve the green vision of the nation.

“Through awareness training of the key stakeholders in the industry, we are confident that the programme can help in achieving tangible gains to reduce the carbon footprint of buildings. The benefits of adopting the energy efficiency measures will be far-reaching including lower energy consumption and costs, and an improved quality of life for residents.”

HE Ahmed Buti Al Muhairbi, Secretary General of the Dubai Supreme Council of Energy, said: “As part of the Dubai Integrated Energy Strategy 2030, we have set a clear goal of retrofitting over 30,000 buildings in the Emirate to make them more energy efficient. To help achieve the goal, it is important that the building industry stakeholders have a clear understanding of the actionable steps they can take in effective retrofitting. The training programme by EmiratesGBC is a valuable initiative in this direction, and will lend further traction to achieving our goals.”

“Masdar has been at the forefront of demand-side energy solutions in Abu Dhabi since conducting the city’s first comprehensive audit on behalf of Abu Dhabi Municipality in 2012,” said Dr Nawal Al Hosany, Executive Director of Sustainability & Brand at Masdar. “Since then we have carried out energy and sustainability audits on more than 100 existing buildings in the emirate, while identifying large-scale retrofitting opportunities for a wide range of clients. Our involvement in the BRT Programme expands on these achievements, raising awareness of the importance of energy efficiency and sustainability best practices in building management in order to meet the development goals of the Abu Dhabi Vision 2030.”

Level One of the BRT Programme is a one-day beginner course that provides foundational knowledge of sustainability to primarily non-technical participants and industry professionals who want an overview of viable retrofit methods applicable in the Gulf region.

The course has five sections which cover building management categories including: energy, water, air quality, materials and waste and innovative management. Expert facilitators lead the training initiative, which is open to all professionals and students. EmiratesGBC members, partners and students of the Masdar Institute (part of the Khalifa University of Science and Technology) will be eligible for a 10 per cent discount on the course fee of AED 1,500. Registration for the programme is now open at https://emiratesgbc.org/retrofit-training-home/

EmiratesGBC recently launched the Green Building Building Tooltips, a rich online resource on the best practices that will help developers, building operators and the public make their built environments more sustainable.

EmiratesGBC regularly hosts and participates in multinational events, conferences and forums. It has also developed a suite of activities, inclusive of networking events, technical workshops, focus days and facilitated training based around specific issues related to the built-environment that meet the needs of its members, of the UAE community and the wider Middle East.

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