DGNB

DGNB stands for “Deutsche Gesellschaft für Nachhaltiges Bauen” which translates to “German Society for Sustainable Building” in English. It is a certification system for evaluating the sustainability of buildings and neighborhoods in Germany. Buildings that meet the DGNB criteria can be awarded certification, which is recognized as a mark of excellence in sustainable building. The DGNB system covers various aspects of sustainability, including energy efficiency, resource conservation, and environmental protection, as well as social and economic factors.

Problems

• Meeting all of the criteria: The DGNB certification system has a wide range of criteria that must be met in order for a building or neighbourhood to be awarded certification.
• Incorporating sustainable design into existing buildings: Certifying existing buildings can be more challenging than certifying new construction, as it may be more difficult to incorporate sustainable design elements into an existing structure.
• High costs: Implementing sustainable design and construction techniques can be more expensive than traditional methods
• Lack of understanding: Some stakeholders may not understand the DGNB certification system and its requirements, making it difficult to secure support and funding for a certification project.
• Evidencing and documentation: One of the most common challenges is to provide the correct evidences and documentation to support the certification which may not always be available in construction
• Site specific challenges: Some certifications may require specific site conditions or features, such as access to public transportation, green spaces or access to natural light, that may not be present in certain locations.

How we can help

• We can help provide clear and concise information that defines the criteria that can be met and pursued to achieve certification, using the extensive experience and knowledge of our DGNB consultant.
• We can help work with the design team to incorporate the requirements into the design phase to ensure that certification is easily achievable and that there are no unforeseen costs associated with DGNB in construction.
• We can help find synergies between DGNB certification and long term cost saving measures such as water conservation, green power generation and energy efficiency with our in-house DNGB consultant.
• We can help clients understand the DGNB certification process and simplify which credits to select and pursue throughout design and construction.
• We can help make the handover process to DNGB assessors easy by ensuring that all required documentation is properly managed during construction, easily accessible and readily available.
• We can help provide a practical approach by assessing site conditions to understand which credits are realistically achievable and determine realistic DGNB standards.