A Comparison Between Spanish and Australian Building Energy Efficiency Codes. A Case Study

The main aim of this study is to compare the requirements established by Spanish and Australian Building Codes in energy efficiency terms through a case study. First the BCA (Building Code of Australia) was analyzed in detail by studying its structure and finding a correlation of the sections with the Spanish Building Code (CTE; Codigo Tecnico de la Edificacion) in Spain. Then the contents in both regulations were identified, as were the building classification, usages and climate zones by climate severity defined for summer and winter using accumulated global radiation and degree per day average. Other factors, such as solar heat gain coefficient, helped develop and facilitate the comparison between both Building Codes. To illustrate the comparison, a detached house was analyzed by implementing the energy requirements for both Building Codes, and by providing construction solutions through natural insulation. The points that presented de most notable differences were identified, as well as the topics with more restrictive regulation notable differences, whose regulation is more restrictive in each aspect. Finally, a programmed software, capable of automatically determining these data, was developed to facilitate the comparison for any other case study.