Promoting energy users' behavioural change in social housing through a serious game

Housing represents about 29% of the total energy consumption in Europe and contributes with around 20% of emissions (European Commission 2013). Social housing represents about 12% of the total European housing stock and therefore is a significant target for energy efficiency measures by governments of EU member states. This paper is aimed at exploring how an innovative serious game could contribute to energy consumption and carbon emissions reduction in social housing by increasing the social tenants’ understanding and engagement in energy efficiency. The proposed solution is being developed under the auspices of the EnerGAware project (Energy Game for Awareness of energy efficiency in social housing communities), funded by the European Commission under the Horizon 2020 programme

Results and insight gained from applying the EnergyCat energy-saving serious game in UK social housing

Concerns about climate change associated with the combustion of fossil fuels urge a call for widespread reductions in household energy use. Determining means of achieving this is a key challenge faced by environmental scientists. The current research presents insights gained from a 12-month empirical trial of new serious game for energy, ‘EnergyCat’; which was designed to encourage household energy reductions in the UK social housing sector. Effects of gameplay on consumption behaviours and energy awareness were explored using 82 UK social housing households (versus a no-game control). Results indicated the intervention did not lead to any substantive changes in awareness or consumption practices. However, post-intervention feedback highlighted several issues in terms of game design and usability that may explain why the game failed to change behaviour in this instance. We provide a framework of suggestions as to how the game design process could be improved in order to engage residents in future, including use of adaptive fonts for older residents, and provision of clearer instructions on gameplay objectives at the outset. In addition, researchers should ensure close collaboration is maintained with residents throughout the design process in future efforts, in order to maximise likelihood of ongoing engagement from this population

A serious game enhancing social tenants' behavioral change towards energy efficiency

The energy consumption of the current building stock represents about 40% of the total final energy consumption in Europe. New gamification techniques may play a significant role in helping users adopt new and more energy efficient behaviours. This paper presents the advances achieved within the context of the EU-funded project EnerGAware - Energy Game for Awareness of energy efficiency in social housing communities. The main objective of the project, funded by the European Union under the Horizon2020 programme, is to reduce the energy consumption and carbon emissions in a sample of European social housing by changing the energy efficiency behaviour of the social tenants through the implementation of a serious game linked to the real energy use of the participants' homes

Guía de actividades docentes para la formación en integración e igualdad de oportunidades por razón de discapacidad en las enseñanzas técnicas: accesibilidad universal y diseño para todos

Estudio financiado por el MEC, Programa Estudio y AnálisisPostprint (published version

Model for identifying life-cycle environmental and cost-effective energy retrofitting measures for the existing office stock

Model for identifying optimal energy retrofitting measures for the existing office stock, by assessing the energy, economic and environmental impact with a life cycle approach. Representative offices include office blocks and offices in industrial buildings and offices in residential buildings

Model for identifying life-cycle environmental and cost-effective energy retrofitting measures for the existing office stock

Model for identifying optimal energy retrofitting measures for the existing office stock, by assessing the energy, economic and environmental impact with a life cycle approach. Representative offices include office blocks and offices in industrial buildings and offices in residential buildings

LCA inventory analysis related to the implementation of energy retrofitting measures in the existing office stock

LCA inventory analysis for assessing the environmental impact related to the implementation of energy retrofitting measures in representative offices, including office blocks and offices in industrial buildings and offices in residential buildings

A web-based system for sharing and disseminating research results: the underground construction case study

Researchers often have to go to multiple information sources in order to identify high-quality, time-critical information. Due to the dynamic and unstructured nature of research results, they are faced with such problems as distributed sources and inter-disciplinary differences in terminology that prevent them from accessing the information they need. This paper presents the System for Active Knowledge Management (SAKM), a web-based system that addresses these problems by supporting effective information search and analysis, and by enhancing communication and collaboration among researchers. The system was implemented in the underground construction field, which has experienced tremendous growth and is facing increasingly complex and challenging research issues. Preliminary testing suggested that a tool like the SAKM could improve the information transfer of research results. The validation stage confirmed that the system met the requirements of the initially defined scenarios

Knowledge management perceptions in construction and design companies

Knowledge management (KM) has been studied extensively in recent years. Some consider knowledge to be the most strategically important resource for any company, but the fragmented, project-based and task-oriented nature of construction work makes it more difficult to implement KM in this sector. This paper presents a survey of perceptions of KM implementation in the Spanish construction sector and compares the results obtained from design and construction firms. Data were collected from the leading civil engineering companies in Spain. The survey found that the Spanish construction industry is aware of the benefits of KM but that systematic KM is not generally implemented. The findings clearly demonstrate that changes in organizational culture are critical to successful KM. The survey also revealed some distinctions between the KM perception of design firms and that of construction firms