Architects’ use of tools for low energy building design: Methodological reflections from ethnography and philosophy of technology

Design practitioners face an increased pressure to design low energy buildings because of the need to reduce the carbon emissions of the built environment. As a response, building performance simulation tools (BPS) have been created for designers to facilitate the decision-making and help them to propose low energy buildings. This paper is based on a research that adopted ethnographic research to conduct a case study comparison and explore how BPS tools were deployed by designers during real-time design process. The research adopted a constructivist approach informed by philosophy of technology and human computer interaction theories to reveal what designers were doing during the design process as opposed to what they should be doing according to best practice advice. This paper focuses on the application of ethnographic methods and brings attention to the advantages, challenges and limitations of adopting ethnographic research to investigate the `context of use of tools'. The discussion of the method brings attention to the context of use of tools as the departure point to develop a range of solutions for design support

Building Information Modelling (BIM) application in relation to embodied energy and carbon (EEC) considerations during design: A practitioner perspective

Buildings’ carbon emission reduction efforts in buildings have mainly been focused on operational energy reduction and, as operational energy is reduced, embodied energy and carbon (EEC) becomes more significant. However, there is currently a lack of legislation and guidance relating to embodied carbon in buildings. This, together with the United Kingdom (UK) construction industry fragmentation, creates a significant barrier to dealing with EEC during building design. In this context, Building Information Modelling (BIM) empowers communications and stores information into one single digital model and has therefore potential to facilitate EEC considerations to be included in building design. This research takes a qualitative approach and looks at the design process in relation to EEC considerations and BIM application and how the latter can facilitate the inclusion of EEC in design considerations. Through semistructured interviews with the construction industry professionals, this research investigates BIM application in relation to EEC information during design. EEC’s current role in building design and the drivers and challenges EEC considerations are being mapped. EEC information processes and how BIM facilitates EEC information exchange and storage as well as the actors involved are revealed. The overall aim of this res

Building Information Modelling (BIM) application in relation to embodied energy and carbon (EEC) considerations during design: A practitioner perspective

Buildings’ carbon emission reduction efforts in buildings have mainly been focused on operational energy reduction and, as operational energy is reduced, embodied energy and carbon (EEC) becomes more significant. However, there is currently a lack of legislation and guidance relating to embodied carbon in buildings. This, together with the United Kingdom (UK) construction industry fragmentation, creates a significant barrier to dealing with EEC during building design. In this context, Building Information Modelling (BIM) empowers communications and stores information into one single digital model and has therefore potential to facilitate EEC considerations to be included in building design. This research takes a qualitative approach and looks at the design process in relation to EEC considerations and BIM application and how the latter can facilitate the inclusion of EEC in design considerations. Through semistructured interviews with the construction industry professionals, this research investigates BIM application in relation to EEC information during design. EEC’s current role in building design and the drivers and challenges EEC considerations are being mapped. EEC information processes and how BIM facilitates EEC information exchange and storage as well as the actors involved are revealed. The overall aim of this res

Smart people in stupid homes: the skill in creating preferred thermal environments

A popular strategy in reducing energy consumption in dwellings has been to remove ‘the user’ from the operation of the building and its systems as far as possible. Occupants and their ‘inconvenient’ behaviour are seen as uncertainties to be set outside the loop. Research conducted by the authors suggests this may not be the most effective strategy for two main reasons. First, many people demonstrate a sensitivity to their thermal environments, a clear understanding of what they want from them, and the ability to operate their homes to achieve those conditions. Second, when users are thwarted in their attempts to create desired thermal experiences there is a risk they will bypass controls and constraints – for example, by using portable electric heaters – resulting in significantly greater energy consumption than expected. This paper suggests that some occupants have a deeper understanding of how their homes work thermally than is usually acknowledged in top-down imposed energy interventions that limit the occupants’ control of their home environment. The authors will argue that users’ intuitive understanding often exceeds the capabilities of automated or ‘black box’ heating control systems by embracing control mechanisms, such as windows and doors, that are not normally considered part of the whole environmental control system. The paper draws on the results of a project jointly funded by the UK’s Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and Électricité de France under the People Energy and Buildings initiative: Conditioning Demand: Older People, Diversity and Thermal Experience. This project studied householders’ attitudes to the introduction of low carbon technologies for heating. Their responses show a sophisticated understanding of the thermal environment and suggest there is a need to investigate people’s understanding of how buildings work and the skills they acquire in getting the best from their homes to provide the thermal conditions they want. The paper explores the division of agency between people, building designs and systems in creating desired thermal environments. It positions occupants as the primary intelligence in operating homes and their energy systems and calls for greater recognition of the role of end-users in the efficient and effective operation of thermal systems in the home. The paper argues that by exploiting people’s intuitive understanding of how buildings work will inform effective low carbon strategies to reduce household energy consumption

Indoor air quality in primary schools: First report

This EPSRC IAA Indoor Air Quality in Primary Schools Project is an interdisciplinary impact project led by Dr Gabriela Zapata-Lancaster from the Welsh School of Architecture as Principal Investigator, Dr Thomas Smith from the School of Geography and Planning as CoInvestigator and Mr Miltiadis Ionas as research assistant. This pilot project aims to support Councils and primary schools in maintaining good indoor environmental conditions in classrooms and indoor spaces. A secondary aim is to produce learning resources for children and teachers and guidance for schools and councils to maintain good indoor environmental conditions classrooms and indoor spaces. The project has proposed and deployed a visual monitoring toolkit to measure indoor air quality in school buildings and provide feedback to occupants. Moreover, it will propose supporting guidance to promote good indoor environmental conditions through behaviours and operational practices in buildings. This research team has partnered with Merthyr Tydfil Council and is working closely with teachers and children in two primary schools towards providing a means for councils and schools to manage the indoor air quality in school buildings. As a secondary aim, it is developing learning resources and engaging in hands-on workshops with pupils to reflect about indoor environmental conditions in schools, focusing on the nexus between behaviours and the resulting indoor environmental conditions

A framework for the study of householders’ engagement with low-carbon energy demand practices in dwellings with grid-connected photovoltaic energy systems

This paper introduces a framework to assess householders' interaction with grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) systems in domestic buildings, in an attempt to research the question To what extent the engagement of occupants in energy demand management practices is relevant for the operational CO2 emissions reductions in dwellings with on-grid PV systems? The focus is placed on identifying the engagement with low-carbon operation practices and its relevance for final CO2 emissions from electricity consumption. Specifically, PV electricity self-consumption and energy conservation practices are studied. To this extent, the research builds on i) the energy services approach and ii) the social practices approach to domestic energy demand. The context of owner-occupied houses which have been retrofitted with PV installations in South Wales, UK is taken as an example. Methods: After a brief conceptual review on domestic energy demand, a mixed-methods framework for the study of householders' engagement with low-carbon energy demand practices is presented, comprising three key aspects: a) the conditions for the practices to occur, b) frequency with which householders enact the practices, and c) the estimation of final operational CO2 emissions performance. Results: As part of ongoing research work, a framework to study households' engagement with low-carbon energy demand practices in buildings with grid-connected PV technology is proposed; focusing on the obtention of a socio-technical lecture to complement other sources of in-use assessment data. Conclusions: Besides single case-studies, the framework has potential applications in recognising and grouping households' engagement profiles. In this way, it is suggested that the framework might facilitate the analysis when extensive assessments are needed; such as in public policy evaluation or demand response studies. Grant Support: This work is funded by CONICYT PFCHA/DOCTORADO BECAS CHILE/2018 - 7218037