Ensuring Energy Efficiency in New Buildings and Renovations

Universitas Islam Sultan Agung (UNISSULA) has established an institutional policy requiring energy-efficiency standards to be applied to all new building construction and all building renovation activities across the university.

The policy is formalised through Circular Letter No. 8391/J/SA/IX/2025, dated 4 September 2025, and applies to units throughout the university.

The circular states that, in order to improve energy efficiency, support sustainable development, and reduce energy consumption, every new building and every renovation must apply energy-efficiency standards.

Mandatory Application to All New Buildings and Renovations

The policy explicitly requires:

Every new building construction and all building renovations within UNISSULA to implement energy-efficiency standards.

This requirement applies across the university and is intended to ensure that energy efficiency is incorporated from the planning stage through implementation.

The policy therefore covers both:

• new building development; and
• renovation of existing buildings.

This creates a consistent institutional approach to energy-efficient building development.

Relevant Energy-Efficiency Standards

UNISSULA requires building planning and renovation activities to refer to relevant national energy-efficiency standards.

The policy specifically identifies:

• SNI 6197:2020 – energy conservation for lighting systems;
• SNI 6390:2020 – energy conservation for building air-conditioning systems;
• SNI 6389:2020 – energy-efficiency standards for building envelopes; and
• applicable Green Building regulations.

These standards are directly stated in the university policy as references for planning and implementation.

Energy-Efficient Lighting

For both new buildings and renovation projects, UNISSULA requires the use of energy-efficient technologies.

The policy identifies the use of LED lighting or equivalent energy-efficient systems as one of the measures to be prioritised.

In addition, the design of buildings and renovated spaces is expected to make greater use of natural daylight where appropriate, reducing unnecessary electricity consumption for artificial lighting.

Natural Ventilation and Efficient Air Conditioning

The policy also promotes the use of natural ventilation as part of energy-conscious building design.

Where mechanical cooling is required, new buildings and renovations are expected to use energy-efficient air-conditioning systems.

This approach helps reduce cooling demand while improving the overall efficiency of building operations.

Efficient Electrical Equipment

UNISSULA also requires new construction and renovation projects to prioritise energy-efficient electrical equipment.

This supports the wider objective of reducing operational energy consumption after construction or renovation is completed.

By incorporating efficiency requirements at the procurement and installation stage, the university can reduce long-term energy demand across its facilities.

Building Envelope Efficiency

The policy requires reference to SNI 6389:2020, which addresses energy efficiency in building envelopes.

This is important because the thermal performance of walls, roofs, openings, glazing, and other external building elements directly affects the amount of energy required for cooling and lighting.

By including building-envelope efficiency in the standards applied to new builds and renovations, UNISSULA integrates energy efficiency into the physical design of its buildings.

Review Before Implementation

UNISSULA’s policy also requires building and renovation planning documents to be evaluated before implementation.

The purpose of this evaluation is to ensure that proposed construction or renovation activities comply with the required energy-efficiency standards before work begins.

This provides an important control mechanism because energy efficiency is checked during the planning process rather than only after a project has been completed.

University-Wide Implementation

The circular is addressed to leaders of faculties, the Director of RSIGM, heads of bureaus, institutes, technical units, organisational units, and administrative offices throughout UNISSULA.

This demonstrates that the policy is intended to be implemented across the university rather than being limited to a single faculty or building.

Supporting Sustainable Campus Development

Through this policy, UNISSULA integrates energy efficiency into campus development and renovation.

The main measures include:

• mandatory energy-efficiency requirements for new buildings;
• mandatory energy-efficiency requirements for renovations;
• application of national energy standards;
• use of LED lighting;
• optimisation of natural lighting and ventilation;
• use of efficient air-conditioning systems;
• use of energy-efficient electrical equipment;
• consideration of building-envelope efficiency; and
• technical evaluation before construction or renovation begins.

Together, these measures support more sustainable building performance and reduced long-term energy consumption.