September 13, 2018
At the moment, universal certificates in the HStar portal are randomly selected for manual analysis by Assessor Accrediting Organisations. This can be a time-consuming process that is constrained by human resources. With rapid daily additions of certificates, this manual process is expected to become a monumental undertaking that can, at best, cover a decreasing proportion of certificates.
A web-based solution (a.k.a. Sherlock) is being developed to address these issues by shortlisting certificates that may require revisions through a systematic, repeatable and traceable approach. This is done by analysing all certificates in the HStar database using an extensible collection of checks for specific issues across every certificate. For example, the (unlikely) absence of any exhaust fans in the entire building. By analysing certificates across regular time periods, Sherlock will be able to present trends of potential errors for regulators to identify areas for improved training and/or communication. This may result in more accurate modelling of buildings for thermal assessments.
Sherlock is currently in the early stages of development. The process will involve the verification of identified issues against manual assessments, and expert opinions. Pending outcomes of this verification process, Sherlock will be deployed to analyse HStar certificates at regular intervals possibly starting from July 2018.
