Simulation, no problem, of course we offer this service! (observations on firms who have worked to make this true)

The paper focuses on the practical experiences of a number of professional firms striving to use simulation to deliver information of value to their clients. It exposes issues such as limitations in existing working practices and the mismatch between language routinely used by facilitators and trainees as well as their different expectations. The paper also discusses the differences observed between incremental implementation of simulation within practices and firms who wished to "jump in at the deep end". Lastly, it addresses the dilemma of how to move simulation tools into the already busy schedules and overloaded programmes of design practices successfully

Thermal mass, insulation and ventilation in sustainable housing - An investigation across climate and occupancy

Sustainable housing standards are reviewed including the UK 2005 building regulations, the UK Advanced Standard and EU Passive-house Standard. Conflicts between the standards are highlighted. The significance of insulation, orientation, ventilation, thermal mass, occupancy, gains, shading and climate on predicted energy performance is illustrated. An ESP-r model is then used to investigate these factors across a range of climates and occupancy / gains scenarios. The investigation covers both heating and cooling energy requirements. The relative importance of key factors is quantified and a matrix of results presented with conclusions. The role of simulation in informing design decisions is demonstrated as well as the importance of considering climate and occupancy/ gains patterns

Business success through process based application of simulation

Progressive design practices are increasingly cognisant of the potential of building energy simulation to assist the delivery of energy efficient, sustainable buildings. However, the success of any building performance assessment hinges on the capabilities of the tool; the collective competences of the team formed to apply it; and, crucially, the existence of an in-house framework within which simulation can be applied with confidence (McElroy and Clarke 1999). There is also a need for the professions to set up mechanisms that facilitate dialogue with vendors in order to influence tool capabilities. And on the related issues of building an in-house competency and a framework for application, the two core issues facing the professions are: i) a need for the development of in-house procedures for management of simulation; and ii) quality assurance of the related models and appraisal results

Building Performance Evaluation, Final Report, Domestic Buildings, Phase 2: In-use performance and post occupancy evaluation, Scotland’s Housing Expo

Scotland’s Housing Expo held in August 2010 in Milton of Leys, Inverness was a high profile event developed to showcase innovative sustainable housing that includes a variety of design ideas and technologies contained within one site (Figure 1:1). This event was the first of its kind in Scotland and was based upon similar Expo models found in mainland Europe and the Nordic countries. The Scottish Expo followed a model from Finland, where historically the ‘Housing Fair’ concept has proven very successful in stimulating high quality design and innovation for housing. The purpose of the Expo was to promote best practice in design with the aim of making sustainable design features commonplace in every home. All dwellings on the site were architect designed, and delivered under a unique design and build arrangement by five developers working together on site in partnership with the local housing agency the Highland Housing Alliance (HHA). The project was completed in 2010 and comprises 27 plots: 26 contain individually designed low energy homes; one plot was undeveloped due to the fact that it proved impossible to reconcile the differential between the project cost as designed with the available budget - this is further discussed in sections 1.3 and 1.4. The Expo was open to the public during the summer of 2010 during which time it generated considerable interest and debate across the architectural, housing and construction sectors in Scotland and the UK. The event attracted over 33,000 professional and lay visitors from home and abroad including visitors from Finland, Russia and Australia. There are 52 houses on the site, 20 for rent/low cost home ownership and 32 houses for sale on the open market. Dwellings demonstrate a variety of layouts and forms designed to minimise energy consumption whilst maximising environmental quality. Contributing energy and environmental features include double height and large volume living spaces, compact form and careful orientation to maximise natural lighting, sun-spaces, external and site design. These houses are now occupied and a living community is developing. During the Expo, visitors were invited to vote for their favourite design - this proved to be a metal and timber clad single dwelling house with a double height living room and a large upstairs hall/study area/play space designed by Malcolm Fraser Architects which is situated on Plot 27. The BPE study was undertaken on eight dwellings: four of these were social rented homes and the remaining four dwellings were owner occupied, sold under a shared ownership scheme. The dwellings selected for study were from four different plots (two dwellings on each plot) each having particular features and design approaches of interest to the construction sector. The comparison of two dwellings from each plot allowed analysis of the effects of occupancy in identically constructed dwellings as well as, a comparison of performance across the differing dwelling designs. The study examined the relationships between design intentions and predictions, impacts of the procurement process, users’ experiences and perceptions of the design, and metered environmental and energy performance. Occupant engagement, in the form of diaries, and the testing of improved occupant guidance were included as part of the project

More illness in offspring of bipolar patients from the U.S. compared to Europe.

Background Evidence suggests that patients with bipolar disorder from the United States have an earlier age of onset and a more difficult course of illness than those from Germany and the Netherlands. These characteristics were related to a greater family burden of psychiatric illness and the experience of more psychosocial adversity in childhood. We hypothesized that this greater illness burden would extend to the offspring of the US patients. Methods 968 outpatients (average age 41) with bipolar illness gave informed consent for participation in a treatment outcome network and filled out a detailed questionnaire about their illness and family history of illness, including whether their offspring had a diagnosis of depression, bipolar disorder, alcohol or substance abuse, suicide attempt or “other” illness. Of those with children, 356 were from the US and 132 were from Europe. Results Compared to the Europeans, offspring of patients from the US had significantly (p\u3c0.001) more depression, bipolar disorder, drug abuse, and “other” illnesses. The number of illnesses in the offspring was related to the bipolar parent being from the US, having had childhood adversity, more than 20 prior episodes, and more parental psychiatric illness. Conclusions While the findings are limited by their basis on self report, the distribution of the percentages in the US offspring are similar to those of Axelson et al. (2015) who used direct interviews. The higher burden of illness in the offspring and their in directprogenitors from the US compared to Europe warrant new attempts at better treatment and prevention

The Wall-ACE project: an overview of the in-field monitoring on the novel Aerogel-based products

The increasing demand for high energy efficient buildings has lead to a growing interest in building envelope solutions characterised by an high level of innovation. The necessity of providing new solutions for the energy retrofit of existing and – especially – old and/or listed buildings is rising great challenges. A promising perspective comes from the implementation of aerogel-based Super Insulating Materials, which can provide added value with respect to current envelope technologies. In this framework, the ongoing EU H2020 research project Wall-ACE aims at developing a suite of Aerogel-based sustainable insulation solutions for the building market. The five insulation products under development were specifically designed for both the renovation of existing buildings and for the construction of new zero energy buildings. The aim is to achieve for each product a thermal conductivity significantly lower with respect to the state-of-the-art solutions. In this paper, an overview of the research activities which led to the development of these new high insulating products is presented. The products developed were tested through laboratory tests, numerical analysis, small scale and full-scale experimental activities. Thereafter, the different large-scale test facilities and the case study buildings selected in different EU countries (Italy, United Kingdom and France) to test the different products developed are showed

Relationship of comorbid personality disorders to prospective outcome in bipolar disorder

Introduction There is a high incidence of Axis II personality disorders (PDs) in patients with bipolar illness, but their influence on the prospectively measured course of bipolar disorder has been less well explicated. Methods 392 outpatients with bipolar disorder gave informed consent, completed the PDQ4 99 item personality disorder rating, and where clinically rated during at least one year of prospective naturalistic treatment. They were classified as Well on admission (N = 64) or Responders (N = 146) or Non-responders (N = 182) to treatment for at least six months. Results Patients who were positive for PDs were very infrequently represented in the category of Well on admission. In addition, patients with borderline, depressive, and schizoid PDs were significantly more likely to be Non-responders compared to Responders upon prospective naturalistic treatment in the network. Conclusions Patients with bipolar disorder and comorbid PDs were in general less likely to be Well from treatment in the community at network entry or to be a Responder to prospective treatment in the network. Therapeutic approaches to patients with PDs deserve specific study in an attempt to achieve a better long-term course of bipolar disorder

25 Years of the International Bipolar Collaborative Network (BCN)

Background The Stanley Foundation Bipolar Treatment Outcome Network (SFBN) recruited more than 900 outpatients from 1995 to 2002 from 4 sites in the United States (US) and 3 in the Netherlands and Germany (abbreviated as Europe). When funding was discontinued, the international group of investigators continued to work together as the Bipolar Collaborative Network (BCN), publishing so far 87 peer-reviewed manuscripts. On the 25th year anniversary of its founding, publication of a brief summary of some of the major findings appeared appropriate. Important insights into the course and treatment of adult outpatients with bipolar disorder were revealed and some methodological issues and lessons learned will be discussed. Results The illness is recurrent and pernicious and difficult to bring to a long-term remission. Virtually all aspects of the illness were more prevalent in the US compared to Europe. This included vastly more patients with early onset illness and those with more psychosocial adversity in childhood; more genetic vulnerability; more anxiety and substance abuse comorbidity; more episodes and rapid cycling; and more treatment non-responsiveness. Conclusions The findings provide a road map for a new round of much needed clinical treatment research studies. They also emphasize the need for the formation of a new network focusing on child and youth onset of mood disorders with a goal to achieve early precision diagnostics for intervention and prevention in attempting to make the course of bipolar illness more benign

Digital Erasmus - a pan-European approach to teaching building performance and resilient design

The global COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 has forced universities to completely rethink their teaching concepts to provide safe, remote teaching of students off-campus. One of the challenges of this rapid transition is ensuring that the quality of the learning experience remains high and that students are able to engage and thrive in this new and predominantly digital environment. This project, entitled 'Digital Erasmus-a roadmap to using building performance simulation to achieve resilient design', responds to this context by seeking to transform the learning experience of students in built environment disciplines using a continuous digital learning cycle. This paper outlines the concept of the program and the learning objectives that it responds to, as well as some initial results highlighting the programs opportunity for students to work collaboratively and transnationally. The program is still in its infancy but it is hoped that it can serve as a template for similar future online courses that will promote safe, interdisciplinary and engaging collaboration amongst students from different universities