MINERGIE

MINERGIE ® is a certification method originating from Switzerland and widely common in practice. Since its introduction in 1994, originally through private sponsorship, then from 1998 through the "Association Minergie" (AMI), more than 40.000 buildings have been certified according to this method. In Switzerland and also in Liechtenstein, Germany and Japan, MINERGIE ® is protected as a registered trademark.

MINERGIE ® distinguishes between the three-level certification regarding the energy requirement of a building and an independent, additional certification of further sustainability criteria. The possible certifications are (see table):

• MINERGIE ®,- MINERGIE-P ®,

• MINERGIE-A ® and

• MINERGIE-ECO ®.

The MINERGIE ® certification process is also subject to permanent development, adapted to available technical innovation. The standard MINERGIE-A ® (see table), for example, was introduced in 2011.

MINERGIE ® certification is based on planning data. Years of experience with the method have shown that the identified energetic key values can mostly be assumed to be rather realistic in practical implementation.

The possible additional certification according to the ECO standard is characterised on the association's website as follows: "Minergie Eco attributes the requirements to six criteria. Health aspects are considered in the criteria daylight, sound protection and healthy indoor climate; the criteria sustainable building concept, choice of materials and processes as well as embodied energy calculation contain building-ecological requirements. So-called criteria for exclusion prevent the use of systems and materials which are entirely incompatible with sustainable construction. This includes, for example, biocides or wood preservatives in indoor rooms." (https://www.minergie.ch/baustandards.html)