Theme Area: Resources, Tools and Gadgets
The presentation will discuss recent work completed for a MasterÕs thesis in Architecture.
Objective: To provide an accessible introduction to energy and daylight simulation tools. Such simulation has traditionally been a specialty of engineers and few architects have as yet integrated these tools into their design process. Ecotect is used as a reference point, as a software package with many possibilities. Energy-10 is used as a comparison tool in regards to projected energy consumption, while Desktop Radiance serves to evaluate the results of the Ecotect lighting analysis function.
Summary: Sustainable design demands an integrated process Š one, which weighs the effects of numerous decisions on as many stakeholders. Inherent to such design is an awareness of resource consumption and how to best integrate those resources, which are sustainable and renewable. The thesis contemplates the role of one such resource, daylighting, in the energy efficiency of Canadian sustainable architecture, using two well-documented Canadian ŌgreenÕ buildings: Terasen (formerly the BC Gas Operations Centre) in Surrey, BC, and the Green on the Grand in Kitchener, Ontario. The experiment is modeled using three simulation tools: Energy-10, Ecotect and Desktop Radiance. Terasen uses a series of constructed screening devices, while Green on the Grand makes use of a spectrally selective coating on the glass. The software tools are used to model several iterations on these two buildings, using permutations of the different shading strategies. The results are analyzed against existing building data and against each other to assess the usefulness and accuracy of the software tools in predicting (quantifying?) the role of daylighting in the context of sustainable design.
Participants in the session will gain an overview of these three primary software tools. A demonstration of each application will be provided with a description of the scope of potential in each tool. The tools will be compared and contrasted to each other, as well as considered in reference to conventional tools such as AutoCAD.
The presentation will require a digital projector suitable for Powerpoint slideshow presentation.
Presenters:
Caroline Prochazka, B.E.S, MasterÕs candidate, School of Architecture, University of Waterloo. 519-822-3832. cjprocha@yahoo.com
Prof. Terri Meyer Boake, B.E.S, B.Arch, M.Arch
School of Architecture, University of Waterloo, 416-636-0031, tboake@sympatico.ca