Multi Objective Optimisation for the minimisation of Life Cycle Carbon Footprint & Life Cycle Cost using NSGA II: A Refurbished High-Rise Residential Building Case Study

This paper presents the application of Multi Objective Optimisation approach to a design decision-making process, which aims to minimise Life Cycle Carbon Footprint (LCCF) and Life Cycle Cost (LCC) from cradle-to-grave of a refurbishment intervention over a period of 60 years. The purpose is to compare the LCCF and LCC of the un-refurbished and refurbished solution of the case study with the optimal solution obtained using a multi-objective computational method. Results show that the application of this method in the decision–making process can achieve considerable carbon emission savings, while relatively smaller savings were recorded in terms of LCC. The LCCF of the optimal solution was 21% less than the refurbished solution and 67% less the un-refurbished solution. Compared to the LCCF assessment, the LCC analysis showed a smaller gap of about 5% between the refurbished and optimal solution, and about 16% between the un-refurbished and optimal solutions

Investigation Into Informational Compatibility Of Building Information Modelling And Building Performance Analysis Software Solutions

There are significant opportunities for Building Information Modelling (BIM) to address issues related to sustainable and energy efficient building design. While the potential benefits associated with the integration of BIM and BPA (Building Performance Analysis) have been recognised, its specifications and formats remain in their early infancy and often fail to live up to the promise of seamless interoperability at various stages of design process. This paper conducts a case study to investigate the interoperability between BIM and BPA tools, and discusses the limitations to suggest development of Information Delivery Manual (IDM) aiming to propose potential solutions for typical issues facing professionals in architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industry

Application of Lean Principles to Neurosurgical Procedures: The Case of Lumbar Spinal Fusion Surgery, a Literature Review and Pilot Series

BACKGROUND Delivery of higher value healthcare is an ultimate government and public goal. Improving efficiency by standardization of surgical steps can improve patient outcomes, reduce costs, and lead to higher value healthcare. Lean principles and methodology have improved timeliness in perioperative medicine; however, process mapping of surgery itself has not been performed. OBJECTIVE To apply Plan/Do/Study/Act (PDSA) cycles methodology to lumbar posterior instrumented fusion (PIF) using lean principles to create a standard work flow, identify waste, remove intraoperative variability, and examine feasibility among pilot cases. METHODS Process maps for 5 PIF procedures were created by a PDSA cycle from 1 faculty neurosurgeon at 1 institution. Plan, modularize PIF into basic components; Do, map and time components; Study, analyze results; and Act, identify waste. Waste inventories, spaghetti diagrams, and chartings of time spent per step were created. Procedural steps were broadly defined in order to compare steps despite the variability in PIF and were analyzed with box and whisker plots to evaluate variability. RESULTS Temporal variabilities in duration of decompression vs closure and hardware vs closure were significantly different (P = .003). Variability in procedural step duration was smallest for closure and largest for exposure. Wastes including waiting and instrument defects accounted for 15% and 66% of all waste, respectively. CONCLUSION This pilot series demonstrates that lean principles can standardize surgical workflows and identify waste. Though time and labor intensive, lean principles and PDSA methodology can be applied to operative steps, not just the perioperative period

Bridging The Performance Gap: Information Delivery Manual Framework To Improve Life-Cycle Information Availability

Buildings account up to one-third of all global energy, and it will more than double in th e next 50 years. In order to accurately predict the energy performance of buildings and improve the analysis methodologies, researchers have developed hundreds of algorithms to simplify or semi-automate the analysis process. However, there is significant evidence to suggest that buildings do not perform as well in practice as was anticipated at the design stage. Findings from a number of existing studies revealed that actual energy consumption is often twice as much as predicted. The major contributors to the performance gap are lack of available information that exists at different stages of the formal building life cycle and delivery process. This paper proposes a framework to develop an integrated and seamless Information Delivery Manual (IDM) by extending the existing IDM approaches to identify and document the information required for building performance analysis