Building Assessment Tools Research Articles

Evaluating Deterioration Causes and Defect Patterns in Heritage Buildings: A Comprehensive Analytical Approach

ABSTRACT The cultural heritage of the city of Erbil faces the threat of rapid urbanization and other challenges. As the city strives to accommodate its exponential growth, the urgency of the need to safeguard its historical landmarks is becoming more apparent. This study examines the deterioration of Erbil’s heritage structures, pointing to environmental adversity, neglect, and urban pressures as prime culprits. Applying the Heritage Building Assessment Tool, infrared imaging, and humidity data, coupled with advanced multivariate analysis, the study identifies pinpointed conservation strategies. It delves into the nuanced relationships between building typology and levels of decay, paving the way for specialized approaches to conservation. Beyond strengthening Erbil’s commitment to heritage preservation, this work can help reinvigorate tourism and provide pivotal insights for the formulation of local policy. Integrating heritage conservation with sustainable urban planning, this study sets forth a versatile blueprint for other historic cities that are navigating similar challenges.

Building sustainability assessment: A comparison between ITACA, DGNB, HQE and SBTool alignment with the European Green Deal

The environmental impact of the construction industry is very heavy. Therefore, the global community is further developing green building assessment tools in order to enhance their efficiency in matching sustainability goals and being more environmentally friendly. An analysis approach by means of Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) was carried out to examine the degree of response of different green building tools utilized in Europe, namely (Innovazione e Trasparenza degli Appalti e la Compatibilità Ambientale ITACA, Deutsches Guetsiegel Nachhaltiges Bauen (DGNB), Haute Qualité Environnementale (HQE) and Sustainable Building Tool (SBTool), to the eight criteria of the European Green Deal (EGD), a roadmap elaborated by the European Commission to enhance sustainability deployment in the region. The first phase of the analysis consisted of a Boolean MCDM aiming to define to which criterion of the EGD each indicator in the tools checklists is linked. These data obtained were later examined by means of Fuzzy Logic to obtain comparable results showing how much each tool helps more following the European roadmap towards sustainability. This work intends to compare the efficiency of the most used tools in Europe for building sustainability evaluation while being based on a particular specified reference and not only the sustainable goals in general. This work also shows the efficiency of combining two MCDCM techniques to obtain better analyzing output. The result of this study shows that the DGNB is the most effective method for connecting all EGD criteria in a balanced manner. The HQE tool demonstrated a strong ability to effectively integrate the objectives of the EGD, except for the energy evaluation aspect. For the ITACA tool, it closely aligned DGNB in its response to the EGD, although it had an absent focus on the smart and sustainable shift of mobility. SBTool demonstrated average performance when compared to other protocols. This was expected since SBTool was the basis on which ITACA, DGNB, and HQE were constructed.

WELL building for developing countries: critical design criteria for residential buildings in Malaysia

Purpose This study aims to investigate the interrelationship between critical design criteria (CDC) that affect health, well-being and productivity (i.e. WELL) for residential buildings in developing countries, using Malaysia as a case study. To achieve the aim, the objectives are to identify CDC that affect WELL collectively; determine CDC that affect health, well-being, and productivity simultaneously; and analyze the interrelationship between the CDC. Design/methodology/approach Data from the semi-structured interviews and a systematic review of the existing literature were gathered for survey development. Next, survey data was collected from 114 professionals living in multistory buildings. Finally, normalized mean analysis, analytic hierarchy process (AHP), agreement analysis and Spearman correlation analysis were used to analyze the collected data. Findings Out of the 51 potential design criteria, 16 are critically affecting WELL collectively. Furthermore, six are critically affecting WELL collectively as well as health, well-being and productivity simultaneously: property price, water flow and supply, water treatment, pest management, management services and waste management. Finally, “water treatment” is highly correlated to “water management” and “water flow and supply.” In addition, “waste management” and “management services,” as well as “fire safety” and “emergency evacuation plans,” are highly correlated. Originality/value This study's originality includes investigating the CDC of residential buildings for the first time, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, in a developing country. As a result, this study uncovers holistic design criteria for policymakers to establish holistic building assessment tools for residential buildings.

Advancing Building Assessment Tools: Achieving Sustainable Development Goals through the Fusion of Internet of Things Occupant-Centric Principles and Sustainable Practices

Advancing Building Assessment Tools: Achieving Sustainable Development Goals through the Fusion of Internet of Things Occupant-Centric Principles and Sustainable Practices

Building Assessment Tool for Contemporary Applications in Art and Architecture Inspired by Islamic Geometric Patterns

Building Assessment Tool for Contemporary Applications in Art and Architecture Inspired by Islamic Geometric Patterns

Modelling the WELL building concepts for office environments: PLS-SEM approach

Purpose The health, well-being and productivity (i.e. WELL) of office building occupants are vulnerable to poor office environments. Therefore, this study aims to identify new features and concepts of office buildings in supporting occupants’ WELL. To achieve that aim, this study: explores new WELL features for office buildings, develops new WELL concepts for office buildings and examines the influence of the newly developed WELL concepts on existing WELL building standard (WELL v2) concepts. Design/methodology/approach The first phase involved ten experts to assign weightage for health, well-being and productivity. In the second phase, 206 questionnaire survey data were collected from office building occupants throughout Malaysia. Exploratory factor analysis established new WELL concepts for office buildings. Partial least-squares structural equation modelling examined the influence of the newly developed WELL concepts on the existing WELL v2 concepts. Findings Two new WELL concepts were developed: “space and services”, consisting of sufficient space, workstation privacy, office layouts, building automation systems, cleanliness and information technology (IT) infrastructure, and “building security”, consisting of security systems and safety at parking lots. Here, “space and services” influences all existing WELL v2 concepts, and “building security” influences the water, nourishment, mind and community concepts of WELL v2. Originality/value This study uncovers holistic WELL building concepts to support occupants’ health, well-being and productivity with additional new features and concepts for construction industry policymakers to establish holistic building assessment tools.

Developing Skill of Using Feedback in Learning-outcome Assessment for Future Teachers

Feedback is an integral part of students’ learning-outcome (LO) assessment. To ensure that students understand what they did well and what needs improvement, teachers must give them clear and detailed feedback on their accomplishments and shortcomings. Therefore, in teacher training, it is essential to help Future Teachers (FTs) have the skill of providing and using feedback (feedback skills) in LO assessment (besides skills in teaching, building assessment tools, organizing learning activities, scientific research, ...). This study aims to identify the factors that affect feedback skills in LO assessment of FTs, thereby providing measures to develop this skill in FTs. This study uses a quantitative research method and a questionnaire design as a data collection tool. Simultaneously, the study uses the impact method to assess the FTs’ changes in the performance of skills before, during, and after the training process. The results show that the main factors affecting the development of FTs’ feedback skills are: classroom experience; feedback culture; pedagogical training; mentorship; confidence. While there are four types of feedback: Feedback about the task; the processing of the task; self-regulation; self as a person. When testing the impact on developing FTs’ feedback skills, the results also show the effectiveness of the feedback skills training process based on experiential learning. The process consists of 4 stages: Concrete experience, reflective observation, abstract conceptualization, active experimentation. This study has theoretical and practical implications for educators of pedagogical universities in training feedback skills in LO assessment for teachers and FTs.

Selection of the Most Appropriate Sustainable Buildings Assessment Categories and Criteria for Developing Countries: Case of Ethiopia

Sustainable buildings can save 36% of total energy use, 65% of electricity consumption, 30% of greenhouse gas emissions, 30% of raw materials use, 30% of waste output, and 12% of potable water consumption. Several sustainable building assessment tools were used by both developed and developing countries. However, Ethiopia’s buildings were not critically assessed and evaluated from a sustainability point of view because there was no such type of study conducted so far. This paper aims to explore the most significant and widely used tools as well as the basis for other sustainable building assessment tools, such as Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Methodology (BREEAM), Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), Comprehensive Assessment System for Built Environment Efficiency (CASBEE), Sustainable Building Tool (SBTool), Comprehensive Environmental Performance Assessment Scheme (CEPAS), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Nachhaltiges Bauen (DGNB), and Green Mark and Green Star. The methodology employed is the selection of the 10 most commonly and widely utilized sustainable building assessment tools (SBATs) from the 57 SBATs based on desk review and document analysis. The results of the study identified that all 10 SBATs have their own assessment categories and criteria based on many factors, such as climatic conditions and availability of resources, plus methods employing demographic dynamics and legal aspects of the sector for assessing the sustainable/green buildings. It distinguishes the most commonly and repeatedly used assessment categories and criteria and uses a consensus-based approach with experts in the building sectors, a four-quadrant model, and a circular and helical flow model, to develop a new sustainable building assessment tool suitable for Ethiopia.

A Preliminary Study of 3D Vernacular Documentation for Conservation and Evaluation: A Case Study in Keraton Kasepuhan Cirebon

Despite the wealth of cultural heritage objects in Indonesia, some of which are considered UNESCO World Heritage sites, more documentation still needs to be done. One of the reasons behind this problem is that the documentation of complex cultural heritage objects is more complicated than most modern objects, which are often more simplistic. This preliminary study aimed to document vernacular heritage buildings in 3D to be used as a conservation and building management tool. The built digital model can then be used as a building assessment tool. The data acquisition method used in this study was a combination of photogrammetry and laser scanner technology. The building model was stored as BIM (IFC model) and then georeferenced before being converted to IndoorGML. The building elements’ information contained in the building model was retrieved as input to analyze the building. This research included analyses for building assessment, natural room temperature, natural lighting, and indoor space and relation. All results from the analysis were used as input to calculate the reliability value of the building using the AHP method. The case study for the heritage building was the house of Prince Arya Denda at Kasepuhan Palace, Cirebon, Indonesia.

The Development of BIM-MyCREST Process Model for Concept Design of Green Buildings

The synergies of the Building Information Modelling (BIM) process and green building assessment tools (GBATs) like the Malaysian Carbon Reduction and Environmental Sustainability Tool (MyCREST) known as green BIM, ensure that information is accurately exchanged during the green building design (GBD) practices. However, the issue of poor Information Exchange synthesis persists due to the lack of a standard model for green BIM implementation. Therefore, this study aims to develop the BIM-MyCREST Process Model (BMPM) for the concept design of green buildings. To actualize the research aim, an in-depth interview was conducted with 10 construction experts. Using the narrative analysis technique, the interview data were analyzed to identify the incidents that take place during the BIM process execution in GBD practices. With reference to MyCREST Guide, BIM standards; and the use of Integrated DEFinition (IDEF) language (IDEF0 and IDEF3), the BMPM was explicitly coordinated following the narratives of the interviewees. The developed BMPM will enable the multi-disciplinary GBD team to use the diverse domain BIM software to exchange accurate information and make critical decisions during the design of green buildings; thereby developing a building with high sustainability performance and accomplishing the business and commercial objectives of the MyCREST rating.

Developing a Green Building Assessment Tool for Ethiopia

Sustainable/green building rating systems are utilized by both developed and developing countries based on their local context. This paper aims to develop an assessment tool that considers the triple bottom line sustainability of buildings. In Ethiopia, buildings of various types and purposes are constructed at an alarming rate with inadequate resources and wasteful uses, so this tool is in urgent need. Developing such a tool is highly appreciated due to the diversified and complicated ecological and socio-economic issues in the building construction sector. This research has developed new green building assessment categories and criteria depending upon consensus reached with 93 experienced experts working on the construction sectors. This research reviewed a total of 10 widely and repeatedly used tools that were critically studied, for instance, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method, Comprehensive Assessment System for Building Environmental Efficiency, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Nachhaltiges Bauen, Sustainable Building Tool, and so on. The Analytic Hierarchy Process technique was applied for weighting and prioritizing after selecting these assessment categories and criteria. The outcomes of the research with the relative priority values were materials and resources (18.66%), sustainable sites and ecology (16.92%), energy efficiency (16.78%), indoor environmental quality (12.60%), economic aspects (10.41%), management (10.30%), water efficiency (8.06%) and location and transportation (6.27%). Thus the proposed sustainable building assessment tool that best suits Ethiopian settings was developed.

Customisation of green buildings assessment tools based on climatic zoning and experts judgement using K-means clustering and fuzzy AHP

Utilising green building regulations and classifications by using well-known assessment tools such as LEED can be challenging in a country with various climates due mainly to specific sustainability priorities for each climate. This paper presents a new framework to customise assessment tools of green buildings for regions or countries with various climates. The framework comprises K -means method to cluster various climates of the region combined with the silhouette value (SV) for clustering verification and local experts' judgement for local customisation of green building assessment tools. The Fuzzy analytical hierarchy process (AHP) is used to adjust the regulations for each climatic zone. The proposed methodology is demonstrated by its application to the real-world case study of Iran. The K -means clustering with SV divides the country into four distinct climatic zones each representing with four meteorological parameters (MP, DTR, CDD, and HDD). Results show each climatic zone can take weights for sustainability categories and criteria based on its climate e.g. higher weight for “Water Efficiency” in zones with low rainfall and higher weight for “Energy and Atmosphere” in zones with heating or cooling needs. Results also show the two categories of “Energy and Atmosphere” and “Water Efficiency” take the largest weights in all zones by an average of almost 27 and 26%. These two categories, alongside with “Sustainable Site”, had the most changes in their weights for each climatic zone. The findings of this research reveal the effects of local climates on sustainability priorities of a green building assessment tool. • A new climate-based customisation of green building assessment tool is developed. • Sustainability categories and criteria are identified based on Delphi methodology. • K-means clustering technique and silhouette value are used to specify climatic zones. • Relevant experts are participated for climate assessment using Fuzzy AHP technique. • Findings reveal effects of climatic clustering on green building assessment tools.

Analysis of BIM-Based Digitising of Green Building Index (GBI): Assessment Method

There is currently an increasing demand for Building Information Modelling (BIM) to be integrated into green projects. BIM is able to evaluate green building assessment tools by digitising and assessing buildings during their development stage. In Malaysia, the Green Building Index (GBI) promotes sustainability in the built environment. Six categories of criteria will be assessed in three of the certification stages. This study focuses on how BIM applications can digitise the GBI criteria for GBI processes. It examines BIM uses and tools of each GBI credit and defines the responsibility and role of construction stakeholders in using BIM to examine the assessment methods used for new non-residential building construction based on GBI. The primary method for data collection is the focus group interview which involves the groups of stakeholders involved in a BIM and GBI project. The result of the BIM–GBI assessment method showed that BIM could digitise and assess 25 credits in Design Assessment (DA), which can achieve 55 points of the total 100 points. This study helps stakeholders define the design team and facility manager’s roles to obtain GBI certification and maintain the certification during the building’s operation stage.

Interior Design Students' Perception on Interior Health and Comfort in Shop House Design for New Normal Era

Objective – The 2020 Covid-19 outbreak has deeply redefined our relationship to public spaces. Public preference has shifted from indoor to outdoor areas which provide open-air spaces to reduce the possibility of Covid-19 transmission. Therefore, shop house foodservice retailers that operated in big cities may find it challenging to meet the new expectation. The Greenship (green building assessment tools in Indonesia) however, has made a checklist on how to achieve better indoor environment quality (IEQ) under the IHC (indoor health and comfort) category. Methodology – The method used for this research was the systematic literature review and typology studies with a proposed conceptual design made by students in Design Interior and Styling for Commercial and Retail Space studio academic year 2020/2021 as samples. Findings – The result shows that almost all students only took care of 5 categories out of 11 categories provided in the IHC category. The highest categories to get attention are indoor pollutant source control and outside view and daylight. The research shows attempts of students to achieve better IEQ but they are unaware that a guide and reference can as well be found in Greenship Interior Space. Novelty - This paper examines young interior designers' perceptions of healthy interior elements that need to be implemented for the purpose of adapting to the new normal. Type of Paper: Review JEL Classification: I23, I29.

A Review of the Environmental Impact of Buildings with an Emphasis on Performance Assessment Tools and Their Incorporation of LCA

Background. The environmental performance of buildings has been a focus of interest over the years in the building sector. Numerous building environmental assessment tools (BEA) have evolved to follow the lead of sustainability by updating categories and criteria from a lifecycle perspective. Therefore, it is timely to review the existing methods that already integrated LCA in their processes. The purpose of this study unfolds in three ways: (1) to review the existing BEA methods and LCA studies in residential buildings, (2) to compare the most adopted BEA methods, and (3) to study the integration of LCA and sustainability aspects applied within each selected BEA method. Methods. Scopus and Web of Science databases were searched for articles published between August 2010 and August 2021 in English. To identify studies and to conduct this review, four keywords, namely “Building Assessment Tools,” “Residential Building,” “LCA,” and “Sustainability” (and their derivatives), were used. The articles were searched so that all four keywords or at least a derivative of each keyword would appear. Furthermore, the outcomes of the database search were categorized as LCA and BEA for the review. Moreover, the seven most adopted rating systems were selected for review and comparison based on (1) the scope of buildings assessed, (2) lifecycle phases assessed, (3) assessment criteria, and (4) the user of tools. Findings. Of the 42 articles that met the enclosure criteria, 20 articles covered the environmental impact and 22 articles covered LCA. The review reveals that most of the analyzed systems focus more on the operational stage than on the other stages. Each BEA method is diverse in terms of its users, criteria, and regions and creates a niche among assessment methods. Conclusions. The main conclusion of this study is that a great deal of work is required to achieve the goal of making the existing “environmental” building assessment tools more sustainable. At the same time, a focus on the better implementation of LCA functionalities at each stage and a complement by integrating socioeconomic‐based LCA models were also required.

Selection of the Most Appropriate Sustainable Buildings Assessment Categories and Criteria for Developing Countries: Case of Ethiopia

Sustainable/green buildings can save for 36% of total energy use, 65% of electricity consumption, and 30% of greenhouse gas emissions, 30% of raw materials use, 30% of waste output, and 12% of potable water consumption. Several sustainable/green building assessment tools were existed and used by both developed and developing countries. However; Ethiopia's buildings were not critically assessed and evaluated from sustainability points of view because there was no such type of studies conducted so far. This paper aims to explore the most significant and widely used as well as the basis for other sustainable/green building assessment tools such as Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Methodology (BREEAM), Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), Comprehensive Assessment System for Built Environment Efficiency (CASBEE), Sustainable Building Tool (SBTool), Comprehensive Environmental Performance Assessment Scheme (CEPAS), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Nachhaltiges Bauen (DGNB), Green Mark and Green Star. The methodology employed for this paper is the selection of the 10 most commonly and widely utilized SBATs from the 57 SBATs based on desk review and document analysis. The results of the study identified that all these 10 SBATs have their own assessment categories and criteria based on many factors like climatic conditions, availability of resources plus methods employed demographic dynamics, and legal aspects of the sector for assessing the sustainable/green buildings. It distinguishes the most commonly and repeatedly used assessment categories and criteria and uses a consensus-based approach with experts in the building sectors, a four-quadrant model, and a Circular and Helical flow model, to develop a new sustainable building assessment tool (SBAT) suitable for Ethiopia.

MOTIVATORS OF GREEN DESIGN ADOPTION IN BUILDING PROJECTS OF LIBYA

Aim of this study is to identify the important motivators of green design adoption in building projects of Libya. Green buildings are unpopular in Libya and are still in their early stages. This might be because of various reasons. Hence, this study focused on identifying major motivators of green design adoption. A total of 24 motivators identified from the literature review were investigated through questionnaire survey. Statistical analysis was carried for analysing 74 collected questionnaires sets with SPSS software Package. It is found that the 24 motivators considered in this study play an important role in pushing the adoption of green design in Libyan building projects. The results provide evidence that top five ranked motivators for green building adoption as ranked by the experts, include; control of climate change, providing improved comfort, health, and well-being of occupants, providing lower annual energy cost, increasing indoor air quality; and increasing indoor air quality; respectively. This study adopted a quantitative approach for collecting data. The targeted respondents were only within the capital Tripoli. As to the climatic change, global warming and lack of resources, the ‘green’ design issue has trended into a measurement in the construction industry. In Libya, rapid growth of developments has contributed significantly in greenhouse gases omission to environment. This has motivated the practitioners to adopt green design concept in building projects. This study has highlighted the key motivators of green design adoption in building industry of Libya which will enable the practitioner for moving forward to take advantage of those motivators for encourage the implement of green buildings. Finally, this study has suggested that international building standards and assessment tools should be adapted as guide to produce the laws and guidebook for green buildings practices in Libya.

GREEN BUILDING RATING SYSTEM (GBRS) AS A TOOL TO IMPOROVE BUILDING SUSTAINABILITY PERFORMANCE IN THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT OF NIGERIA

In the worldwide, the impacts associated with the use of technological innovations and developmental processes in the built environment through the construction of buildings are phenomenal. This is noticeable in the literature on the role of green building practices in building construction, building operation and optimization, and building management; respectively. This has led stakeholders and policy drivers to adopt principles of sustainability by producing green building rating systems to assess building stock at different stages of their life cycle. Dealing with the issue, this paper aimed to review various attempts made by selected nations and other stakeholders to produce green building rating tools and focused on the need to develop a green building rating system for Nigeria to enhance the sustainability performance of the country’s building stock. Given the various efforts by countries around the world to develop green building assessment tools, the paper found and maintained that Nigeria as a geographical entity cannot decide to be left out of the global trend to achieve sustainability through the need to have its own Green Building Rating System. The paper, therefore, recommended that there is a need to consider various assessments of the existing green building in either tropical or temperate region around the world and have a domestic green building rating assessment for the country to ensure that sustainability of her building stock can be promoted.

A REVIEW OF MALAYSIAN SUSTAINABLE BUILDING ASSESSMENT TOOLS: THE SOCIAL DIMENSION

Building assessment tools have been introduced for nearly two decades to specifically recognize buildings performance towards sustainable development goals. However, the requirements to achieve sustainability in buildings are mainly focused on the environmental and economic aspects, while the significance of social aspects has been scarcely emphasized in many building assessments tools. This paper presents a review of social aspects in the sustainable building assessment tools adopted in Malaysia. In total, four building assessment tools are selected and discussed with the aim to identify to what extent the building assessment tools cover the social dimension. The results of the content analysis indicate that the assessment tools have included partial criteria of social aspects but the scope could further expand to preserve the key features of the social aspects including quality of life, human health, and environmental satisfaction. The findings provide a valuable overview of the building assessment tools and address gaps in existing building assessment tools from a social aspect perspective.

Assessment of Tools for Sustainability Appraisal of Buildings/Building Groups

The construction sector is one of the significant users of energy and natural resources. It was estimated that the sector uses nearly 40% of the total raw-material inflow to the global economy each year. Based on this fact, the construction sector is an essential contributor to environmental pollution and poses challenges in meeting sustainable development goals. This paper discusses the building assessment tools or models used to assess whether a building meets environmental standards with the view to explore the applications of these tools and their benefits. The paper notes that the environmental assessment models and the assessment itself are worthwhile as it offers several benefits to the society and environment, especially the first among them, the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) in the UK. The BREEAM model has created awareness among the stakeholders and has achieved high levels of success. Over 1000 buildings have been assessed in the UK and over 1800 individuals involved as assessors. Thus, it creates jobs in addition to protecting the environment. Mitigation measures are integrated into the certification. It is cost-effective, especially in the long run and more environmentally friendly, unlike the conventional ones. Moreover, efforts should be geared towards harmonising the rating scales and standards across continents or climate regions.