Museum's energy-efficiency 'among the worst' (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Museum's energy-efficiency 'among the worst'

4:40pm Wednesday 8th October 2008 in

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Bradford’s National Media Museum has been named as one of the country’s most energy-hungry buildings by a new study.

The museum scored a G in the sliding grade scale which researched the energy-efficiency of 18,000 buildings, including other museums, town halls and schools.

The building, which dates from the 1960s, was among 3,200 assessed so far. One in four scored F or G, with less than one per cent scoring an A.

The scores were judged by the Department for Communities and Local Government, which looked at the gas and electricity running costs of buildings.

It is now law for any public building larger than 1,000 square metres to show a display energy certificate (DEC).

The National Media Museum houses five floors of interactive galleries and three cinemas in premises originally built to house a theatre.

It spent £189,807.42 on energy bills in 2007-08, roughly 26p per visitor.

Museum director Colin Philpott said: “We are currently implementing a number of energy-saving measures and investigating further energy-saving techniques which we hope to have in place in the short to medium term.”

A statement released by the museum said: “The museum is proactive in implementing a number of energy-saving measures including installing voltage optimisation, which should reduce its electricity consumption by ten to 15 per cent. “Energy-saving options are being investigated including installing CHP (combined heat and power) which would enable the museum to generate some of its electricity on site, and then use the heat generated for heating space and water.”

e-mail: ben.barnett@telegraphandargus.co.uk