Should you have questions related to the Smart Readiness Indicator (SRI) which are not yet covered and explained on this page, please contact ENER-BUILDINGS
ec [dot] europa [dot] eu (ENER-BUILDINGS[at]ec[dot]europa[dot]eu)
General questions
Where does the SRI concept come from?
The SRI was introduced in the European policy landscape through the Directive amending the Energy Performance of Buildings (2018/844/EU). The directive sent a strong political message about the EU’s commitment to modernise its building sector in the light of technological improvements and the urgent requirement to increase the current rate of building renovations.
The SRI concept was further developed through technical studies, carried out on behalf of the European Commission, involving a broad range of stakeholders from the building sector. The final report on the technical support to the development of a smart readiness indicator for buildings (September 2020) provides additional context on the SRI concept.
How to receive SRI updates and news?
Interested stakeholders are invited to subscribe to the SRI newsletter. You are welcome to consult the previous issues here.
How to contact the support team?
The SRI support team can be contacted by mail: ENER-BUILDINGSec [dot] europa [dot] eu (ENER-BUILDINGS[at]ec[dot]europa[dot]eu)
SRI implementation and testing
Is the SRI implementation mandatory?
According to the Directive amending the Energy Performance of Buildings (2018/844/EU), it is an optional scheme: EU countries can freely decide whether or not they want to test and/or implement the SRI scheme.
How does the Commission support SRI implementation?
The Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/2155 established the definition of the SRI and a common methodology, by which it should be calculated. The Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/2156 detailed the technical modalities for effective implementation of the SRI.
To support the implementation of the SRI across Europe, the Commission has contracted a support team to:
- provide technical assistance to EU countries in testing and implementing the SRI
- coordinate with relevant initiatives such as projects funded by the LIFE Clean Energy Transition sub-programme
- manage the SRI platform.
Who can define an official testing phase and how?
According to the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/2156, all arrangements of the SRI national test phases must be defined by EU countries, including the duration, phasing, types of building and geographical zones targeted, aspects of the SRI framework that are tested, arrangements for collecting feedback, criteria for the choice of experts carrying out the SRI assessments, the decision on whether an independent control system should be established as part of the test phase, the decision on whether certificates should be issued and made available to economic operators during the test phase, and designation of a third party to manage the test phase, where relevant.
EU countries that plan to undertake a national test phase must notify the Commission ahead of launching the test phase, also indicating applicable arrangements.
At the end of the national test phases, countries shall assess the outcomes and decide whether they will implement the SRI. They must submit a report on the related feedback to the Commission, at the latest 6 months after the conclusion of the test phase.
What support is available to EU countries?
EU countries can receive specific support as part of, or prior to, undertaking their SRI test phase or implementation phase.
Calls for expressions of interest are regularly organised by the SRI support team in order to understand EU countries’ needs and define related support actions.
So far, nine countries have decided to launch a test phase of the SRI and have requested such support: Austria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Slovenia and Spain.
How can stakeholders be involved in test phases?
According to the Commission Delegated Regulation and the Commission Implementing Regulation, the national governments are the ones who make the decision to implement and/or test the SRI on their territories. Research, business and industry stakeholders interested in the SRI may contact their national authority in order to express their interest in taking part in implementation and/or test phases of the SRI. They may also participate in the SRI platform.
SRI methodology
Where to find the detailed SRI methodology?
The Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/2155 established the definition of the SRI and a common methodology by which it is to be calculated. Its annexes provide general principles about (among other things): the calculation of smart readiness scores, the weighting of impact criteria in key functionalities, the weighting of technical domains and the smart readiness rating. The contents of these annexes form the SRI legal framework.
The SRI technical framework consists in a catalogue of smart-ready services (including mandatory and optional services) functionality levels and weighting factors. A generic, EU-level technical framework has been developed based on the outcomes of a technical study on the SRI carried out in 2019-2020 (see chapter 1 of the Final report on the technical support to the development of a smart readiness indicator for buildings). It can be provided upon request by filling this form (calculation sheet and practical guide). This video provides a live demonstration of using the calculation sheet of the generic, EU-level technical framework with practical examples.
EU countries, when testing or implementing the SRI, may adapt the generic, EU-level technical framework in order to take into account their national specificities.
How to calculate the SRI score of a building?
An assessment package corresponding to the non-binding generic, EU-level technical framework of the SRI can be provided upon request by filling this form. It consists of an offline spreadsheet and an accompanying practical guide).
Various projects and initiatives are also working on developing online digital tools to conduct SRI assessments, see here.
Can the SRI methodology still evolve?
The generic, EU-level technical framework of the SRI, which had been designed after extensive Europe-wide stakeholder consultations, may be subject to improvements following the feedback from the official test phases carried out in EU countries, the activities of the LIFE projects and of other stakeholders. The SRI platform was set up in December 2021 to facilitate exchanges between EU countries and stakeholders on various aspects of the SRI, including potential fine-tuning of the generic technical framework. All stakeholders interested in following the evolutions of the SRI methodology are welcomed to join the plenary meetings of the SRI platform, which meets bi-annually.
Finally, national authorities may decide to define their specific national technical framework.