Abstract
Energy efficient buildings are buildings that consume less energy while also maintaining or improving the comfort conditions for their occupants, compared to the normal building type. Such buildings result not only in less negative impact on the environment, but are economically sustainable and resilient. This study investigated the extent to which building professional firms in Abuja, Nigeria are aware and implement the different energy efficiency design strategies available for deployment in office buildings, in order to ascertain the current level of knowledge and implementation of the strategies within the building industry in the study area. A structured questionnaire was used to gather data from 80 professionals drawn from architectural and engineering firms involved in the design of office buildings in the study area. The data were analysed by descriptive statistics and the results indicate that both the awareness and implementation levels of energy efficiency design strategies by the firms are high. Whereas most (78%) of the respondents are aware of the various energy efficiency design strategies employed in office building designs, few (22%) of them have little or no knowledge of the strategies investigated. On the implementation level, majority (69%) of the participants recorded a high rate, while few (31%) recorded a low rate. The study also found that the strategies the firms are mostly aware of are site planning, natural ventilation and building orientation. Whereas, the three most adopted strategies among the strategies investigated are: building plan and space organisation; site planning and building orientation. Among the recommendations of the study is that relevant stakeholders of the building industry in the country, should provide platforms from time to time for promoting the benefits of energy efficiency design strategies in the country, in order to maintain the high level of understanding and deployment of the strategies by the building professionals that currently exist in the study area. This is envisaged to ultimately lead to curtailing the adverse effects of global warming on the environment in the long run.
Highlights
90% of our time is spent in buildings, either at home or in the office
It was in an attempt to bridge this gap identified in literature that this study investigated the extent to which building professional firms in Abuja, Nigeria are aware and implement the different energy efficiency design strategies available for deployment in office building, in order to ascertain the current level of knowledge and implementation of the strategies within the building industry in the study area
These results indicate that the professionals who participated in the study are mainly middle-aged male Engineers and Architects with professional experience of over 5 years
Summary
90% of our time is spent in buildings, either at home or in the office. Energy efficient buildings are the way to go in the design and construction of office buildings in the 21st century. This has arisen from great concerns in the world about the effects of buildings on the environment and on users and their comfort levels within them [21]. Office buildings consume a lot of energy during construction and occupation and this has adverse consequences directly on building users and their comfort levels can be affected, while affecting the immediate surroundings of the buildings. It is important to develop modern day office buildings as energy efficient buildings
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