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Glossary termPublished inEPBD IV

Building automation and control system

Also known as GACS, gebouwautomatiserings- en controlesysteem

What does "Building automation and control system" mean under EPBD IV?

A system comprising all products, software and engineering services that can support energy-efficient, economical and safe operation of technical building systems through automatic controls and by facilitating the manual management of those technical building systems

Defined in / by

Last updated: 14 October 2026.

From 290 kW to 70 kW

The definition is broad on purpose. It covers products, software and engineering services together, and it requires both automatic control and support for manual management. A thermostat on its own is not a system in this sense; a platform that monitors and steers heating, cooling and ventilation is.

Article 13(9) turns the definition into a duty for non-residential buildings, where technically and economically feasible, measured by the effective rated output of their heating, air-conditioning or combined systems. The Directive set two steps: above 290 kW by 31 December 2024, and above 70 kW by 31 December 2029. Article 13(10) lists what the system must be able to do, starting with continuously monitoring, logging, analysing and allowing for adjusting energy use, and benchmarking the building's energy efficiency. Article 13(12) adds automatic lighting controls for the same buildings, above 290 kW by 31 December 2027 and above 70 kW by 31 December 2029.

In the Netherlands the duty is called the GACS obligation. RVO states that non-residential buildings above 290 kW have needed one since 1 January 2026, a year after the Directive's first date. Staatsblad 2026, 103 adds automatic lighting control from 1 January 2028 and lowers the threshold to 70 kW from 1 January 2030. The municipality or the omgevingsdienst is the competent authority.

Questions and answers

Which buildings need a building automation and control system?

Under Article 13(9) of EPBD IV, non-residential buildings whose heating, air-conditioning or combined systems have an effective rated output above 290 kW, and from the end of 2029 above 70 kW. In the Netherlands the 70 kW threshold applies from 1 January 2030.

Who checks the GACS obligation in the Netherlands?

RVO names the municipality or the omgevingsdienst as competent authority for the GACS rules, and the owner is contacted first, even when the building is let.

Regulations

  • Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD IV)

    EPBD IV is Directive (EU) 2024/1275, the recast Energy Performance of Buildings Directive. The Netherlands put its first tranche into force on 29 May 2026 (Stb. 2026, 103), with duties staged to 2033: recharging points in existing car parks from 1 January 2027, solar and lighting control from 1 January 2028. Energy label D by 2030 is still a proposal.

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