What is an intelligent building? Analysis of recent interpretations from an international perspective

In recent years, the notion of intelligent buildings (IBs) has become increasingly popular due to their potentials for deploying design initiatives and emerging technologies towards maximized occupants’ comfort and well-being with sustainable design. However, various definitions, interpretations, and implications regarding the essence of IBs exist. Various key performance indicators of IBs have been proposed in different contexts. This study explores the notion of IBs and presents an analysis of their main constituents. Through a comparison of these constituents in different contexts, this study aims to extract the common features of IBs leading to an evolved definition which could be useful as a reference framework for design, evaluation, and development of future IBs. Findings also scrutinize the long run benefits of IBs, while demonstrating the constraints and challenges of the current international interpretations

Sick building syndrome: are we doing enough?

Health and well-being are vitally important aspects of people centric building design and are the roots of productivity. Sick building syndrome (SBS) is a collection of factors that can negatively affect physical health in several ways. Besides physical health is also related to psychological well-being because the human body is one interactive biological system. This paper focuses on reviewing the current state of knowledge on building sickness syndrome which has been prevalent as a building illness since the 1970s especially in offices and schools. While the concepts of intelligent, smart and sustainable buildings have gained considerable attention during recent decades, there is now increasing attention being given to designing healthy buildings. This study provides a review about SBS symptoms. Several negative effects of SBS are identified and potential solutions are advocated. Finally, the study stresses the role of built environment and concludes that ongoing research towards tackling SBS and developing healthy indoor environments should not be limited to a single formula as any health-related building design approach is dependent on several interacting factors

The essence of smart homes: application of intelligent technologies towards smarter urban future

Smart homes have been predominantly pointed as one of the key constituents of intelligent environments. These are residential units substantially integrated with a communicating network of sensors and intelligentsystems based on the application of new design initiatives and creative technologies. This studyprovides a holistic overview on the essence of smart homes besides demonstrating their current status,benefits and future directions. The study reveals that smart homes embrace significant potentials towardsachieving comfort, security, independent lifestyle and enhanced quality of life. Findings urge the necessityto focus on further exploration of the social and environmental benefits derived from the application ofcreative technologies in smart homes. The study concludes that smart homes play a fundamental role inshaping the future cities. Finally, the study identifies a research gap indicating that there has been lessconsideration towards linking the fundamental potentials of smart homes to the overall performanceand key indicators of smart cities

Application of nD BIM Integrated Knowledge-based Building Management System (BIM-IKBMS) for Inspecting the Post-construction Energy Efficiency

The evolution of construction industry towards sustainability highlighted the absolute necessity to inspect sustainable performances throughout the post-construction building lifecycle. Correspondingly, application of relevant building management systems (BMS) to achieve this goal is mandatory (Ippolito, Riva Sanseverino, & Zizzo, 2014). In addition, conventional post-construction building inspection methods are outdated and less effective. Therefore; this research aims to propose specific utilization of BIM during building maintenance for the consequential post-construction energy efficiency. Contemporarily, Building Information Modelling (BIM) is considered as a leading technology capable of being utilized in Architecture, Engineering, Construction (AEC) practices highlighting its critical role in enhancing the effectiveness of project delivery from conceptual initiation to eventualization and even post-construction maintenance (Ding, Zhou, & Akinci, 2014; Volk, Stengel, & Schultmann, 2014). Alternatively, despite the recent presentation of BIM to the AEC industry, it has widely emerged to an undisputedly contributive technology towards advancement of AEC implementations. Furthermore, BIM’s capability of nD project integrations has prominently highlighted its potential effectiveness while being accurately incorporated with sustainable performances (Farr, Piroozfar, & Robinson, 2014). Moreover, researchers have highlighted that information gathering and modelling through BIM can reduce respective building energy consumptions (Lawrence et al., 2012). The remarkable proportion of global energy consumption by the construction industry has fundamentally driven the concentration on decreasing the building energy consumption via amplified sensor data and improved computational support for building controls (Klein et al., 2012). Subsequently, it is vital to balance the maximization of building energy efficiency and users’ desired level of comfort while employing an efficient BMS for sustainable maintenance of facility operations overstressing the implication of post-construction building inspection. Researchers have overstressed that application of an efficient Facility Maintenance and Management systems (FMM) enables executives to detect problems primarily and sustain the facility more effectively (Chen, Hou, & Wang, 2013). On the other hand, the conventional inspection method of progress tracking practice would solely rely on manual visual assessments and periodical respective reports. This progress consisted of logs and checklists manually prepared to indicate the project’s level of adaptability with the required milestones and specifications (Bosché, Ahmed, Turkan, Haas, & Haas, 2014). Effectiveness and accuracy of the corresponding inspection progress would have been affected based on the individual’s personal judgment and observational skills. Additionally, high probability of inaccurate manual building inspections plus the lack of real-time input of dynamic factors urges development of automated BMS. Therefore, Building Information Modelling (BIM) plays a key role towards automation in construction and corresponding management systems. However, adequate skills; competence and enthusiasm of construction role-players and contractors is a significantly important issue towards future success of such propositions (Miettinen & Paavola, 2014). Additionally, the progression of AEC building delivery includes design, construction, contracting and maintenance. This complex process, engaging multi-layer and multi-domain information storage and exchange, necessitates integrative contributions from versatile and incorporative professional teams thus; competent information sharing among players is a critical factor towards success therefore; a proposed BIM system capable of resolving AEC interoperability complications would remarkably enhance the overall project output and respectively the building energy efficiency throughout its lifecycle (Dong, O'Neill, & Li, 2014). Despite the nD capability of BIM enabling its potential practice during versatile building lifecycle phases, designers-contractors focused primarily on the application of BIM during design-construction management stages. Furthermore, positive prospects of BIM’s potential to be applied throughout the post-construction energy efficiency enhancements can be augmented while highlighting the conceivable successful utilization of BIM during corrective building maintenance management concerns compared to preventive concerns (Motawa & Almarshad, 2013). Moreover, integration of knowledge management systems empowering handling and sharing of respective building maintenance information over the building lifecycle is an inevitable essential during post-construction sustainable performances. Harmoniously, contemporary sustainable developments incorporate advancement of exploiting the aforementioned practices. Congruently, focusing on the building energy efficiency, this article suggests engagement of an Integrated Knowledge-based Building Management System using nD BIM applications (BIM-IKBMS) during the post-construction building lifecycle to advance the implementation of sustainable building performances

The Thermal Performance Exploration of Outdoor and Indoor Spaces Using IES & ENVI-me

© 2017 Society for Modeling & Simulation International (SCS). Recent studies have frequently reported the relatively high rate of thermal discomfort in urban spaces during summer time in numerous cities. This clearly indicates the crucial need for applying effective passive design and heat mitigation strategies during the early design phase of urban built environments. Reviewing the recent studies in this area, it is found that there is a growing interest in use of ENVI-met simulation for the purpose of thermal performance investigation of urban areas. However, besides the limitations of ENVI-met simulation, the majority of these studies do not fully take into account the impacts of their findings on indoor environments. As a result, this study proposes a new simulation approach using IES and ENVI-met to better understand the design weaknesses of the existing urban settings and explore the circumstances of thermal performance optimization. Hence, looking at two case studies in Toronto and Kuala Lumpur; the study explores and tests the benefits of the proposed two-phase simulation strategy. The output of this strategy can lead to the development of more effective technical guidelines for the design of thermally comfortable urban areas while taking into account the impact of the proposed configurations on both outdoor and indoor thermal conditions

Urban heat island mitigation strategies: a state-of-the-art review on Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Hong Kong

Observing the rapid urban expansions and numerous infrastructure developments in the East-Asian context, many cities are suffering the urban heat island (UHI) effect and its associated environmental and social challenges. Moreover, the lack of sufficient attention to the application of effective heat mitigation strategies in current urban development in these cities can drastically intensify the eventual impacts of UHI. Therefore, many governmental sectors and policy makers have been implementing operative solutions for cooling cities. Nevertheless, this study argues that in Kuala Lumpur, despite the growing attention to this matter, there is still a need for more rigorous consideration by the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) professionals as well as more scholarly studies to reflect sustainable solutions to the UHI effect. As a result, today, some of the dense urban areas in Kuala Lumpur are characterized with the use of thermally massive building materials, urban surfaces with low albedo, complex urban morphology, waste heat, and low density of vegetation. On the other hand, recent studies demonstrate that there has been a rapidly increasing interest in studies related to UHI in other East Asian regions such as Singapore and Hong Kong. Hence, this study develops a comparative analysis to provide a state-of-the-art review of the recent attempts towards mitigating the UHI effect in Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, and Hong Kong. Among several available UHI mitigation strategies, this study is limited to the analysis of the environmental impacts of urban vegetation (green roofs, green facades, vertical greeneries and green pavements). Findings reveal that in general, urban greening can significantly mitigate the UHI intensity, both directly and indirectly, resulting in the decrease of global air temperature and mean radiant temperature up to 4 °C and 4.5 °C respectively. Overall, the study develops new practical guidelines, discusses the public benefits and elaborates on the future directions of UHI studies

Quantitative Computational Experiment (QCE): An Alternative Post-Positivist Experimental Research Strategy of Inquiry for Design Studies

One of the most important aspects for development of valid results in academic research is selection of the appropriate research methodology. Contemporary research in design studies confronts the rapid expansion of emerging hightech trends. Correspondingly, an adapted research methodology is required to meet the needs of current circumstances. This paper articulates employment of a quantitative computational research methodology for design studies. The research framework, implementation and validations are expressed in details. Computational charrette test method and computational emulation reasoning and representation are incorporated in order to validate the discussed research methodology outputs. In summary, the developed research methodology is articulated in details to enable further exploitations in academic research and practices

Integrating augmented reality and building information modelling to facilitate construction site coordination

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