HabitEnergie. Success factors in the construction of very low-energy housing: the weight of stakeholder relationships and of household practices - a survey in three European countries

In addition to technical factors, widespread development of energy effi cient buildings depends on various factors including the strong willingness of the actors, favourable regulation and economic mechanisms, all of which infl uence the decisionmaking process. In the design and construction stage, the most important factors are the relationship between diff erent professional actors involved in the choice and implementation of energy effi cient solutions for the envelope and the HVAC systems. In the operation stage, the maintenance of the building, and the behaviour and practices of fi nal users are the main factors for reaching energy effi ciency objectives. Th e HabitEnergie project aims to analyse, through a qualitative (on-site survey of several buildings and actors, among fi nal users, decision makers and professionals) and geographical approach ( France, Switzerland and Germany), the weight of these factors in determining the success of operations which aim to achieve very-low energy consumption. Th e partnership brings together energy and services providers, and public and private energy and environment experts in the three EU countries involved in the survey. For ensuring relevance of the survey results, the HabitEnergie project focuses on the single-family house sector where the fi nal users are generally also the decision-makers. Th is partnership will allow comparison of practices and analysis of results in order to: Weigh the diff erences between the 3 countries involved. Share knowledge about support and follow-up actions that enhance the infl uence of the diff erent actors throughout all stages of the project process.