International standards - tools in efficient energy use in buildings.

Commission, the UN commission for development and the environment, has recommended a great effort on more efficient energy use, so drastic that the industrial countries would half their use of energy. Already today, it is possible to reduce the energy use in buildings with the help of known and economical technology. The technical committee ISO/TC 163, Thermal insulation, of the International Organization for Standardization, ISO, has produced some of the tools we need in order to determine the energy flows in buildings. TC 163 has produced standards on the determination and presentation of relevant material properties. The committee has also elaborated test methods and calculation methods by which the thermal properties of building components and building constructions can be quantified. Other standards give tools needed for the design and the evaluation of the thermal performance of a building. These standards and others under production give us a set of tools by which rational decisions on how to use energy more efficiently in buildings can be made.