Integration of thermal energy simulation in the early design stages: six case studies

Abstract The aim of this paper is to demonstrate the feasibility of energy tool integration to the design process from the early stages. With that purpose, it presents a systematization of the procedures that take place between designer and modeler, based on six case studies of buildings in a warm climate. The key elements are the understanding of the buildings' characteristics, programming, including goals and needs, and solution proposals and designer´s intentions. Such concerns led to the development of a checklist to improve the dialogue between modeller and designer. The results also highlight the variables that most influence the building's energy consumption, and the interaction between modeller and designer, according to their profile, the implicit freedom and constraints in the programing, the recurrent solutions which, in some cases, could do without the simulations. Besides the confirmation of the feasibility of early integration, the main contribution of this study is the mapping of the processes between designer and modeller and the intensity of the relationships, demonstrating the potential and constraints of integration, which may be useful in the development of energy tools and training for modellers.摘要 本文旨在论证从设计早期阶段将能源工具集成（energy tool integration）至建筑设计流程的可行性。为此，基于6个温热气候区建筑的案例研究，本文系统化梳理了设计师与建模师之间的协作流程。核心研究内容包括对建筑特征的认知、涵盖目标与需求的建筑策划（programming），以及设计方案与设计师意图的梳理。基于上述研究需求，本文开发了一套用于优化建模师与设计师沟通的核查清单。研究结果还明确了对建筑能耗影响最为显著的变量，以及基于双方职业画像、策划阶段隐含自由度与约束条件的建模师与设计师交互模式，同时发现部分常规解决方案在部分场景下可无需依赖模拟即可落地。除验证了早期集成的可行性外，本研究的主要贡献还在于对设计师与建模师间的协作流程及关联强度进行了映射，阐明了集成工作的潜力与约束条件，可为能源工具的开发以及建模师的职业培训提供参考。