NCC 2022 - Class 2 Building with Centralised Services

State: All

Assessor Question:

Can you please confirm whether Class 2 SOUs with central DHW and HVAC can be assessed using the NatHERS WoH tools as provided within the accredited software (e.g. Hero)?

TechLink Response:

While NatHERS can be used to assess the thermal performance of all individual units within apartments (Class 2 buildings), providing a star rating out of 10 and it can also be used to comply with the new National Construction Code (NCC 2022) Whole of Home requirements where apartments have decentralised hot water and space conditioning systems.  

However, under the current iteration of the NCC, using NatHERS software to assess whole of home elements of class 2 building is not possible. This is under review for the 2025 version of the NCC, however for now Assessors can use the alternative pathways in NCC 2022. 

For example, for apartments with centralised hot water systems, you can use NCC 2022 Volume 1 Verification Method J1V5, also known as Verification Using a Reference Building (VURB), or another Performance Solution. 

A combination of approaches can be used to demonstrate compliance – for example, using NatHERS to demonstrate the thermal performance requirements and VURB to demonstrate Whole of Home compliance.