English

Paper is focused on description of Czech national methodology and tool for energy performance calculation according to EPBD (Energy performance building directive 91/2002). Energy performance calculation is expressed by total annual energy consumption, including heating, cooling, ventilation, auxiliary and other energy required for building operation. There is a simplified multizone model, loaded by typical day for each month in hourly time step. Climate data are synthetic data for 4 climate zones according to standards, used for building physics calculation.

This paper explores the developing process and resulting features of an ultra high performance tower designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill through a multidisciplinary approach to building simulation and analysis. The 309 meter tall office tower for a new development in the Pearl River Delta region of Southern China, is an exemplar of the marriage of technical sophistication with a graceful form, featuring integrated renewable energy strategies and an active double skin facade coupled with a low energy building conditioning system.

Models calculating the environmental benefits of renovation and retrofitting of buildings are generally based on energy calculations and don’t take into account the environmental penalty of demolishing and replacing parts of the building and its equipment.

The purpose of this study is to develop a thermal design tool for architectural designer by combining a heat balance simulation for urban surfaces, including buildings, the ground and greenery, with a 3D-CAD. This tool is constructed by improving the previous simulation model, which uses the Geographic Information System for the input data. The simulation algorithm is improved so as to predict the surface temperature distribution of urban blocks while taking into account the actual design of the outdoor space using the 3D-CAD system.

The HVAC system in a real building was simulated by the energy simulation tool being developed (Ito et al. 2007, Sugihara et al. 2007). In order to confirm the practical utility of the tool, the studies are conducted on each phase: Program/Planning/ Design  phase, Construction phase, Pilot-Operation phase and Operation phase.

This paper describes the conversion of equipment characteristics into mathematical formulae, verification of the precision of said mathematical formula, and a concrete simulation tool. The main feature of this simulator is that operation of equipment is solved using temperature and flow, not calories. However, the characteristics of equipment are described using as simple a formula as possible. These formula are verified with actual values, and the simulator was confirmed to provide sufficient accuracy for energy management.

The importance of LCEM (Life Cycle Energy Management) has been recognized from the view of life cycle energy saving of sustainable buildings. The purposes of this research are proposal of an LCEM framework and development of prototype HVAC system simulation tools for LCEM. In this paper, necessity of energy simulation tools for LCEM is discussed, and the outline and solution method of the simulation tool are shown.

A computerized model, CoED (Collaboration Enhancing among Design participants) was developed, focusing on the relationships between designers, design variables and design phases. It uses optimization, based on Genetic Algorithm, to decompose these relationships into workgroups of relevant designers and design issues, for each design phase. It identifies intersecting issues between designers, allowing them to be aware of the effects of their decisions on issues relevant to others and enlightening tradeoff options for each one so that conflicts may be avoided and controlled.

A computer system for enabling designers and entrepreneurs a simple, convenient and quick manner to select different building technologies for the building's envelope is presented. The selection is achieved by examining the profitability of each alternative, while presenting its performance ability on the basis of a large number of criteria. This paper looks at the application of multiple criteria decision making (MCDM) techniques in the assessment of environmentally sensitive construction methods.

Progressive design practices are increasingly cognisant of the potential of building energy simulation to assist the delivery of energy efficient, sustainable buildings. However, the success of any building performance assessment hinges on the capabilities of the tool; the collective competences of the team formed to apply it; and, crucially, the existence of an in-house framework within which simulation can be applied with confidence (McElroy and Clarke 1999).