“This is about changing the experience for the consumer, making the systems that underpin the issuing of energy certificates stronger and linking our professional assessors with the Australian public in an engaging way,” Rodger Hills, ABSA’s CEO said.

“We have had some great feedback about the site which is much easier to navigate and helps to educate the Australian public about what building sustainability is, and how they can build better and more efficient homes.

“In these times of such huge concerns over power and water costs making buildings more energy efficient, better performing thermally and constructed from low-carbon materials means cold hard savings for homeowners and society in general,” he said.

“Housing is long-life infrastructure.

“Houses built today shape the energy, water and resource demands for decades to come. Making them efficient now will reduce the cost-of-living for homeowners and benefit society over the full life of the building,” he said.

“The new website helps people to understand what efficient homes are all about and the new RCS system for our assessors ensures that the issuing of energy rating certificates for new homes is simpler, more robust and less open to manipulation.

“We must do all we can to ensure that this system is truly robust and of the highest standards and quality,” he said.

“We see ABSA assessors as professionals who deserve to have a similar profile in the community as say engineers and architects.

“Our new website makes it so much easier for the general public to find out more about what our assessors do and also how to find one.

“This is about ensuring quality and connecting consumers with professional assessors,” he said.

“Once an assessor has input all the necessary thermal performance data about a project the RCS produces a unique digital stamp and homeowner certificate.

“The Homeowner Certificate is a key plank in ABSA’s future strategy as an organisation as it not only helps raise the profile of accredited assessors, it will, in a very short time be something of value that quality builders will be expecting, because it sets them apart in the industry too,” he said.

Released: 01/10/2012