Sustainable Design Approach: A case study of BIM use

Abstract

Achieving sustainable design in areas such as energy-efficient design depends largely on the accuracy of the analysis performed after the design is completed with all its components and material details. There are different analysis approaches and methods that predict relevant values and metrics such as U value, energy use and energy savings. Although certain differences in the accuracy of these approaches and methods have been recorded, this research paper does not focus on such matter, where determining the reason for discrepancies between those approaches and methods is difficult, because all error sources act simultaneously. The research paper rather introduces an approach through which BIM, building information modelling, can be utilised during the initial phases of the designing process, by analysing the values and metrics of sustainable design before going into the design details of a building.Managing all of the project drawings in a single file, BIM –building information modelling- is well known as one digital platform that offers a multidisciplinary detailed design –AEC model (Barison and Santos, 2010, Welle et.al., 2011). The paper presents in general BIM use in the early phases of the design process, in order to achieve certain required areas of sustainable design. The paper proceeds to introduce BIM use in specific areas such as site selection, wind velocity and building orientation, in terms of reaching the farther possible sustainable solution.In the initial phases of designing, material details and building components are not fully specified or selected yet. The designer usually focuses on zoning, topology, circulations, and other design requirements. The proposed approach employs the strategies and analysis of BIM use during those initial design phases in order to have the analysis and results of each solution or alternative design. The stakeholders and designers would have a better effective decision making process with a full clarity of each alternative’s consequences. The architect would settle down and proceed in the alternative design of the best sustainable analysis. In later design stages, using the sustainable types of materials such as insulation, cladding, etc., and applying sustainable building components such as doors, windows, etc. would add more improvements and enhancements in reaching better values and metrics.The paper describes the methodology of this design approach through BIM strategies adopted in design creation. Case studies of architectural designs are used to highlight the details and benefits of this proposed approach.