Life Cycle Cost and Carbon Appraisal for a Prefabricated Residential Development in London

This paper provides an overview of the opportunities for renewable energy generation and low-carbon solutions in a prefabricated residential development (which includes some commercial space) in London. Its objective is to identify the optimum design of mechanical and electrical (M&E) plant and energy solution configurations. As well as technical appraisals and assessments of compliance with planning policies, a broad comparison of the capital cost and life cycle cost (LCC) of different options is carried out. To assess the costs, specifically the energy costs, and the carbon implications of various design scenarios, this study has reviewed the capital costs as well as the operational costs (cost in use) of applying various renewable and low carbon energy technologies to different primary heating strategies, over a 30-year life cycle. This is the same period included within the operational model. Accordingly, scenarios involving the use of electricity, gas and air source heat pumps (ASHPs) were examined and compared. The results suggest that ASHPs have the lowest energy and carbon emissions but high LCC, while the gas plant option has the lowest capital and maintenance costs.