Exploring the effectiveness of BIM for energy performance management of non-domestic buildings

Following several years of research and development around the subject of BIM, its impact on the design and handover of buildings is now becoming visible across the construction industry. Changes in design procedures and information management methods indicate the potential for greater utilisation of a Common Data Environment in areas other than design. To identify how these changes are influencing the engineering design process, and adapt this process to the needs and requirements of building performance management requires consideration of multiple factors, relating mainly to the stakeholders and processes employed in these procedures. This thesis is the culmination of a four year Engineering Doctorate exploring how BIM could be used to support non-domestic building energy performance management. It begins with an introduction to the research aim and objectives, then presents a thorough review of the subject area and the methodologies employed for the research. Research is split between eight sequential tasks using literature review, interviews, data analysis and case-study application from which findings, conclusions and key recommendations are made. Findings demonstrate disparity between different information environments and provide insight into the necessary steps to enable connection between BIM and monitored building energy performance information. They highlight the following factors essential to providing an information environment suitable for BIM applied performance management: Skills in handling information and the interface between various environments; Technology capable of producing structured and accurate information, supporting efficient access for interconnection with other environments; and Processes that define the standards to which information is classified, stored and modified, with responsibility for its creation and modification made clear throughout the building life-cycle. A prototype method for the linking of BIM and monitored building energy performance data is demonstrated for a case-study building, encountering many of the technical barriers preventing replication on other projects. Methodological challenges are identified using review of existing building design and operation procedures. In conclusion the research found that BIM is still in its infancy, and while efforts are being made to apply it in novel ways to support efficient operation, several challenges remain. Opportunities for building energy performance improvement may be visualised using the modelling environment BIM provides, and the ability to interface with descriptive performance data suggests the future potential for BIM utilisation post-handover

Rule-based integrated building management systems

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.The introduction of building management systems in large buildings have improved the control of building services and provided energy savings. However, current building management systems are limited by the physical level of integration of the building's services and the lack of intelligence provided in the control algorithms. This thesis proposes a new approach to the design and operation of building management systems using rule-based artificial intelligence techniques. The main aim of is to manage the services in the building in a more co-ordinated and intelligent manner than is possible by conventional techniques. This approach also aims to reduce the operational cost of the building by automatically tuning the energy consumption in accordance with occupancy profile of the building. A rule-based design methodology is proposed for building management systems. The design adopts the integrated structure made possible by the introduction of a common communications network for building services. The 'intelligence' is coded in the form of rules in such a way that it is both independent of any specific building description and easy to facilitate subsequent modification and addition. This is achieved using an object-oriented approach and classifying the range of data available into defined classes. The rules are divided into two knowledge-bases which are concerned with the building's control and its facilities management respectively. A wide range of rule-based features are proposed to operate on this data structure and are classified in terms of the data classes on which they operate. The concepts presented in this thesis were evaluated using software simulations, mathematical analysis and some hardware implementation. The conclusions of this work are that a rule-based building management system could provide significant enhancements over existing systems in terms of energy savings and improvements for both the building's management staff and its occupants

Institute of Safety Research; Annual Report 1997

The report gives an overview on the scientific work of the Institute of Safety Research in 1997

Fuel from straw: an in-field briquetting process

Disposal of large quantities of surplus straw, which lie in the fields after harvest, is a major annual problem to cereal farmers. The current preferred solution of burning the straw where it lies is environmentally unsatisfactory and appears to be a huge waste of a potentially valuable, renewable energy source. None of the currently available straw packaging systems provides an economically viable alternative. A process is proposed for producing industrial quality fuel briquettes using a tractor towed implement. The economic feasibility of such a system is investigated and comparisons are made with existing straw disposal methods. The projected cost of fuel, produced in this way, is compared with prevailing fossil fuel prices. A multistage continuous process machine concept is described and the various stages are proven workable both experimentally, in the laboratory, and analytically. Laboratory experiments determine the forces required to produce acceptable quality briquettes and comparisons are made between the power available from the tractor, the economical throughput rate and the energy consumed in the compaction process. The mechanism of bonding within the straw packages, under compression, is examined so that the parameters necessary to give the optimum machine design may be understood. The effect, on briquette quality, of variations in die shape within the constraints imposed by the machine concept is fully investigated. Experiments extend to compression at speeds representative of 'live' field operation and a die shape is developed which produces packages of consistently good durability. Many of the design ideas put forward in this thesis have now been incorporated in an original prototype machine, built and successfully field-tested by the company who has supported this project and now holds the relevant patents

Computer data base assessment of masonry bridges.

SIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre- DSC:D81974 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

The design of control systems for automated transport

In this thesis, the design of control systems for automated transport is approached from a systems point of view. The first section discusses general aspects of control system design, namely, system structure, design for reliability and communication requirements. The treatment of the subject is novel and in particular, Chapter 2 - 'The Design of 'Fail-Soft' Systems', is completely original. The second section of the thesis discusses in detail, the longitudinal control of vehicles, emergency control and junction control. In all a novel viewpoint is adopted. There are two broad categories of transport control, synchronous and asynchronous. The former has been the subject of considerable research, the latter has been completely ignored. This thesis concentrates on asynchronous control. Contrary to the views stated by many researchers, it is shown that asynchronous control can achieve a very much better performance than synchronous controllers. In addition, a completely new form of asynchronous control has been devised, and is presented in this thesis. This scheme, the asynchronous marker-follower control, combines the advantages of synchronous controllers (simple processing and low communication requirements) with the advantages of asynchronous controllers (an efficient use of track and a good response to failures). In the last section of the thesis, the computer simulation models, used to examine the control schemes, are described. The interactions between automated vehicles are particularly complex, consequently clear presentation is important. To this end a number of graph plotting routines were written and a moving picture display technique developed. Each Chapter is supported by a bibliography of references particularly relevant to the chapter. In addition a comprehensive bibliography is contained in the Appendices

Edoardo Benvenuto Prize. Collection of papers

The promotion of studies and research on the science and art of building in their historical development constitutes the objective that the Edoardo Benvenuto Association has set itself, since its establishment, in order to honor the memory of Edoardo Benvenuto (1940-1998). The Association in recent years has achieved interesting results by developing various activities such as: organization of national and international meetings, conferences, study days; collaborations with national and foreign research institutions; promotion of the editorial series “Between Mechanics and Architecture"; activation of the portal Bibliotheca Mechanica Architectonica, first “open source” digitized library dedicated to historical research on mechanical and architectural texts. But perhaps the most qualifying initiative was the institution of the Edoardo Benvenuto Prize, arrived in 2019 in its twelfth edition, reserved for young researchers in the field of historical studies on science and the art of building. The awarding of the Prize takes place after an in-depth examination of the texts received by the Association by an international commission of experts. The purpose of this book is to collect and present the most recent studies and publications produced by the winners of the various editions of the Edoardo Benvenuto Prize

Recruitment dynamics of a resident passerine: dippers Cinclus cinclus in Scotland

1. This thesis presents the results of a population ecology study of the Dipper Cinclus cinclus in the western Ochil Hills, Tayside and Central Regions, Scotland between April 1985 and May 1988. 2. Particular attention was given to factors affecting juvenile survival between fledging and recruitment to the breeding population. These included investigation of the variation and significance of body size, plumage colour. dispersal distance, home range acquisition, dominance status and autumn body condition. 3. Overwinter survival was higher in adults than juveniles. Juvenile females had a greater overwinter survival and recruitment rate than juvenile males. Few body size measures were consistently associated with overwinter survival,though juvenile females with longer wings and tarsi tended to survive better. 4. Males had higher plumage brightness scores than females and, within sexes, adults were brighter than juveniles. Overall, survival overwinter and recruitment were not related to plumage brightness. 5. A laboratory test arena was developed for assessing dominance relations in small groups of temporarily captive birds. Social status between age and sex classes was correlated with plumage brightness. Within age classes, plumage brightness was a significant predictor of status in adults, but body size was more important in juveniles. 6. Females settled farther from their natal sites than males; most of this dispersal was completed soon after independence. The relationship between dispersal and dominance is discussed and a model developed. 7. Autumn population density was manipulated locally in a series of experimental juvenile introductions. Numbers rapidly returned to initial levels, though earlier released individuals persisted for longer. About 20% of introduced birds recruited, mainly higher status males. 8. Body composition of a small sample of birds collected between September and April is described. Lipid stores were greatest in winter and least in spring. A method for measuring pectoralis muscle thickness was developed using an ultrasound-based technique. 9. Condition indices derived from "ultrasound" measurements on live birds were used to evaluate the importance of protein reserves in overwinter survival. Males in good condition in autumn were more likely to recruit but no trend was apparent in females. 10. Two periods of high juvenile losses were identified: post-independence and late autumn. Predation could only be implicated in the former. The agent of late autumn losses was not proven but probably involved territorial intolerance and the consequent exclusion of subordinates to fringe habitats. It is concluded that density-dependent changes in mortality, related to dominance and mediated via dispersal, caused Dipper numbers tobe matched to available resources, principally food and breeding territories