With global populations expected to grow rapidly over the coming decades, particularly in large urban centers, there’s been a renewed focus on creating structures designed from the outset to be higher performing and more energy-efficient.
While buildings can be retrofitted to make certain systems more efficient, the process is often expensive and time-consuming work. That’s why it seems it’s best to incorporate an energy-efficiency plan before even the first nail is hammered, and that’s where early-stage building energy modeling (BEM) comes into play.
Across both residential and commercial construction, the amount of energy consumed to keep buildings lit up and temperature-controlled is steadily climbing. Buildings account for nearly 40% of global energy consumption.
What is Building Energy Modeling?
Building energy modeling, or BEM, is a process that estimates how much energy a building will consume once built. Typically done in a form of a software simulation, the model looks at a building’s mechanical systems, location, and inner workings, and takes a holistic view of how those factors all work together. Using that knowledge, designers are then able to strategize on the best methods to ensure maximum energy efficiency and incorporate them directly into their design.
Past methods touched on some of what BEM tools can do today. However, most older modeling techniques focused predominantly on specific factors such as how much energy would be required to keep a building warm in the winter and cool in the summer, or to keep the lights on. BEM is different—it considers the whole picture beyond obvious energy hogs.
BEM takes many factors into consideration and allows architects to design their projects accordingly. It looks at granular details like a building’s expected occupancy schedules and local weather patterns. All data points are entered into the software, which then performs a series of complex physics calculations to determine how to coordinate all the factors for optimal energy usage in the project. Architects can then consult that energy model as a guide informing their design.
Benefits To Using BEM During Preconstruction
Using BEM allows designers to accurately estimate a building’s total energy use over time and the associated costs according to the U.S. Department of Energy. It also enables both architects and engineers to set efficiency goals for clients, which can then be realized in the finished structure. BEM can be also used to show a client how the upfront investment will be offset by more efficient operation over time, and how long it will take to break even on that investment.
How Green Building Investment Pays Off
Investing in green building upfront can actually put more money in owners’ pockets in the long run. The lifetime cost of keeping a green building’s systems humming can be significantly lower than in conventional construction. BEM can be used by designers to help buildings meet Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) requirements, resulting in even more cost savings to the owners through tax incentives.
Leed Buildings reports that owners of commercial buildings may see an almost 20% drop in maintenance costs than typical commercial buildings As of 2018, Green buildings also tended to be worth more money, with owners reporting an increase in value of 10% or more, according to the U.S. Green Building Council.
The growing focus on carbon footprints and energy consumption is resulting in designers, architects, and engineers seeking out new methods to create buildings that conform to that demand. As the global population increases, it will become even more important to curtail energy usage, and methods like BEM are just one way construction professionals can do it.