RT2005

The French RT 2005 is the response to the national energy strategy defined in the programme law, which establishes the orientations of the 13 July 2005 energy policy: first of all, it contributes to national energy independence and secondly, it promotes the economic competitiveness of French products, techniques and engineering on the domestic and export markets.

Application of the French RT2005

Thermal regulation :

- applies to new residential and office buildings (with the exception of those whose normal operating temperature is equal to or less than 12°C, temporary constructions (intended for less than two years of use), farm animal rearing buildings as well as buildings heated or cooled due to the constraints related to their use),

- concerns projects for which a planning permission was filed after 1st September 2006,

- is defined by articles L.111-9, R.111-6 and R.111-20 of the French Building and housing Code and their application decrees.

RT2005 : conditions applicable to buildings

• Energy savings :the global energy consumption of the building for heating, domestic hot water, cooling, auxiliaries, as well as lighting in the case of an office building, must be lower than the reference consumption level for the building. This corresponds to the energy the same building would consume for the required performance of the structure and equipment that compose it. The regulations therefore leave the designer free to use equipment or materials with a lower performance than the reference standard, within the limits of the safeguards, and on condition that it has higher performance than the reference in other areas of loss. RT2005 also introduces an upper consumption limit for housing. Energy consumption in these buildings for heating, cooling and domestic hot water must in fact be lower than a limit value, which depends on the type of heating and the climate.
• Summertime comfort : the conventional interior temperature reached during the summer must be lower than the reference temperature.
• "Safeguards” : minimum performance levels are required for a series of elements (insulation, ventilation, heating system...). Introduced by RT 2000, these minimum performance levels were bolstered by RT 2005, especially in terms of loss through thermal bridges.