Facilitating responsive interaction between occupants and building systems through dynamic post-occupancy evaluation

Abstract

Post-occupancy evaluation (POE) is a process that can reveal the interrelations between key building performance factors and successfully integrate indoor environmental quality, thermal comfort, functionality, environmental strategy and occupants’ satisfaction. POE has become a prerequisite for several building certification systems and it is often presented as a method to improve the commissioning of buildings and as a user experience feedback mechanism. This paper is based on a POE undertaken through stages at the University of Southampton Mayflower Halls of Residence complex. The first stage included the evaluation of occupant satisfaction, indoor environment quality and energy use. Results from temperature and relative humidity monitoring and an online POE questionnaire were analysed in the context of energy use, thermal comfort and building controls’ functionality. The second part of this study monitored the air temperature in a sub-sample of 30 rooms where the residents participated in a thermal comfort survey with a “right-here-right-now” questionnaire and a portable instrument that monitored air temperature, relative humidity, globe temperature and air velocity in the rooms. This paper presents the results of the POE and discusses approaches for the improvement in the buildings’ energy performance and the environmental conditions in the living spaces of the students. Results suggest that current use of controls is not always effective, with implications for the buildings’ energy use. Large variability was found in occupants’ thermal perception and preferences, which points to a need for occupant-centric solutions. In this study, POE is approached as a dynamic process that could be used to facilitate the responsive interaction of occupants with building systems and deliver through their engagement high energy performance and comfort.