Building Sustainability Assessment Methods Research Articles

Automating building sustainability assessment using building information modelling: A case study

Facing the increasing pursuit of sustainable buildings, the construction industry has been adopting new project technologies. Building Sustainability Assessment (BSA) methods are a key tool to evaluate building sustainability, but their use is hindered by the time-consuming assessment process and required data. With the emergence of Building Information Modelling (BIM), new potentialities have been found, such as continuous data storage and integrated building design. Facing the opportunity to integrate BSA into BIM, this research aims to automate the assessment of a BSA scheme by creating a BIM-based application for the project's early stages. Visual Programming Language (VPL) was used to translate SBToolPT-H criteria requirements into computable rules and create the SBToolBIM application. Results show the feasibility of automating BSA with BIM, by integrating 19 criteria into SBToolBIM and identifying BIM connections for the remaining 6 criteria. The applied procedure has established a novel framework to carry out BSA within the BIM environment in a faster and more reliable way using fewer resources. It offers a decision support tool for the design process able to provide valuable contributions to enhance building sustainability and meet decarbonisation and climate goals.

Methodology to Identify and Prioritise the Sustainability Aspects to Be Considered in the Design of Brazilian Healthcare Buildings

The evidence of climate change has increased the necessity for actions to avoid severe consequences for future generations. Recognising the benefits of sustainable and energy-efficient buildings has led to the development of several methods to estimate and rate the performance of building. Healthcare buildings are functional and dynamic structures that support their occupants’ healing processes and comfort. They have a significant role in society and specific goals in merging their strategic planning requirements (cost reduction, regulatory compliance, social responsibility, and performance improvement) with Sustainable Development Goals. Therefore, this paper addresses critical issues regarding the sustainability of the Brazilian healthcare sector by analysing the suitability of the most common international healthcare building sustainability assessment methods to the specific social, economic, and environmental contexts of the Brazilian healthcare sector. The paper analyses the HBSAtool-PT, a sustainability assessment method developed for this type of building, and identifies the possibilities for adapting to the Brazilian context. As a result, this research proposes a framework to assess the sustainability of healthcare buildings in Brazil. In the framework’s definition, a survey was conducted to determine the opinion of building stakeholders regarding the importance of indicators. A weighing system for the proposed sustainability indicators was developed using the AHP method.

A critical analysis of LEED, BREEAM and DGNB as sustainability assessment methods for retail buildings

(1) Background: Retail stores are among the building typologies with the highest consumption of natural resources. Hence, understanding how retail stores can integrate sustainability principles within a life cycle perspective and how Building Sustainability Assessment (BSA) methods can contribute for such is of great importance. Yet, studies comparing the applicability of BSA methods to retail buildings are missing, which is a gap in knowledge this study intends to address. (2) Methods: A state-of-the-art review was carried out regarding the most common BSA methods and their applicability to retail buildings. LEED, BREEAM and DGNB were chosen to be compared in terms of certification ranking, categories, indicators, weights, and usage-specific guidelines for retail buildings. (3) Results: In general, LEED and BREEAM are more focused on the environmental aspects of sustainability (namely in energy) while DGNB integrates the environmental, social, and economic dimensions equally. DGNB is the most adapted method for retail buildings, providing performance metrics for retail buildings, namely regarding operational costs and energy demand values. (4) Conclusions: While DGNB is the most robust BSA method for retail buildings, more attention could be given to performance metrics such as water and energy consumption benchmarks, carbon and material footprint, life cycle cost, or economic value to facilitate comparison amongst different methods. By identifying the strengths and weaknesses of each method, this study supports informed decision making when choosing a BSA method and informs the development of regional BSA methods for retail buildings, considering the limitations of existing tools.

Assessing the Sustainability of Retail Buildings: The Portuguese Method LiderA

Retail stores are among the building typologies with the highest consumption of natural resources. However, studies regarding the development of Building Sustainability Assessment methods for retail buildings are missing, despite their environmental, economic, and social importance. This study intends to address this gap in knowledge by (i) developing the Portuguese method LiderA for retail buildings, (ii) comparing LiderA to other BSA methods, and (iii) assessing results in two case studies. The development of LiderA for retail buildings took under consideration the indicators, weights, and specific guidelines of different BSA methods for retail buildings (namely LEED, BREEAM, and DGNB) and trends in the retail sector expressed in retailers’ sustainability reports and retailers’ associations. The most innovative aspects of the development of LiderA for retail buildings include the definition of benchmarks to assess sustainability performance in terms of Energy Intensity (EI), Carbon Intensity (CI), and Water Intensity (WI). Additionally, sustainable business operation practices were introduced in selected indicators as an alternative way to foster the roots of sustainability further down into the value chain, namely regarding ethical and sustainable product purchases, the protection of human rights, a code of conduct for suppliers, fair trade, product traceability, healthy food, sustainable agriculture, and local and organic products. The LiderA method, developed for retail buildings, can support designers, managers, and users in designing and managing more sustainable stores by providing benchmarks and best-practice thresholds for EI, CI, and WI. Given that global retailers operate hundreds of stores, the results show a key potential to increase the environmental performance of retail stores, supporting decision-making towards maximum energy efficiency and carbon neutrality.

Cloud-based sustainability assessment (CSA) system for automating the sustainability decision-making process of built assets

Digital tools help facilitate the implementation of sustainability practices in the built environment in the era of rapid urban developments. However, the extant literature revealed salient gaps in the use of cloud-based systems and digital tools to evaluate buildings' sustainability performance. Consequently, the current study aims to develop and implement a cloud-based sustainability assessment (CSA) system to evaluate and compare the sustainability performance of buildings based on the Building Sustainability Assessment Method (BSAM) scheme green rating system. A design science research (DSR) approach was adopted in designing, developing, and validating the CSA system. The developed CSA system is based on the SaaS model of cloud computing. The methods evaluation validation of the CSA system when compared with other systems revealed that the developed CSA system would result in higher time and learning efficiency for the users. The findings from the case study validation of the CSA system, using four building projects, indicate that the developed artefact offers a better secured, automated, reliable, and value-adding tool for the building sustainability assessment process. It also eases the automated process of updating data, evaluating, and comparing building projects towards improving the overall building sustainability profile. More so, the CSA system has a great potential to assist stakeholders in their buildings’ sustainability decision-making process and enhancing sustainable development.

BIM-Based Energy Analysis and Sustainability Assessment—Application to Portuguese Buildings

Buildings are responsible for several negative impacts on the environment, most of them related to nonrenewable energy consumption, increasing the concern regarding buildings energy efficiency. In this context, computer software has been used to estimate the energy needs of the built environment, and the Building Information Modelling (BIM) methodology can be used to simplify this process. This study aims to validate a BIM-based framework to streamline the energy analysis of Portuguese buildings, based on the method of the national regulation for the thermal performance of residential buildings. Currently, designers need to spend considerable time assessing all the building characteristics and performing the mandatory calculations for energy performance analysis. It is also intended to link the results of the energy simulation with a Building Sustainability Assessment method—SBToolPT-H. The purpose is to demonstrate how it is possible to benefit from this approach to simultaneously improve building sustainability during the design stage. To do so, different case studies were modelled in Autodesk Revit and exported to a BIM energy tool to perform energy simulation analysis. The results were validated against the official assessment method of the Portuguese thermal regulation and were successfully used to assess the SBToolPT-H energy efficiency category. The research outcomes provide design teams with a reliable BIM-based framework to improve building energy performance and to develop thermal projects while enhancing building sustainability. It also increases the knowledge about the integration of sustainability assessment in the BIM environment, providing new insights for complete integration.

Building Sustainability Assessment Methods: current update

The major reason that promoted the development of systems to support environmental performance assessment of buildings was the effective realisation, in some countries, that they were unable to say how sustainable a building was. Later researchers and government agencies understood that assessment tools are the best method to demonstrate the level of sustainability of all types of constructions. These can improve the education for a sustainable society, because it can promote understanding between the principles of sustainable construction and the user. Within this, several countries have developed their own methods for sustainability assessment adapted to their reality and presenting them as capable of guiding the overall performance of this sector. Most of these methods are based on local rules and legislation, in locally conventional construction technologies, with the default weight of each indicator set according to the actual local socio-cultural, economic and environmental contexts. Through the years, these methods have contributed to the growth of the awareness about criteria and objectives of sustainability, and they have been improved to a more holistic approach. They become a reference to assess the sustainability of buildings in particular and construction in general.This paper proposes to present the evolution of these methods after twenty-five years, comparing and critical analysing the most recognised ones. It will expose the results of comparation, regarding criteria, weights and final scores, and presented the new path these methods are now tracing. A new trend for method to support design rather than certifying an erected building is also presented. In conclusions it will be discussed the pros and cons of the appearance of them and their improvements.

A Systematic Review of the Role of BIM in Building Sustainability Assessment Methods

Building Information Modelling (BIM) is creating new opportunities for the Architecture, Engineering and Construction industry. One of them is the integration of the Building Sustainability Assessment (BSA) during the design process. Currently, an approach for using BIM to foster and optimise the application of BSA methods has not been clearly established yet, creating a knowledge gap on the application of BIM for sustainability assessment purposes. Thus, this paper analyses the current role of BIM to evaluate three BSA methods—LEED, BREEAM and SBTool. The current BIM applicability is assessed by performing a systematic review, where the criteria being assessed and the applied BIM software are identified. A comparison is made to determine which BSA method can currently take more advantage from BIM and to identify the number of assessed criteria from each one. Furthermore, the attractiveness of a BIM-based assessment for SBTool is analysed, facing the actual BIM scenario for LEED and BREEAM. Despite the restrictions, BIM use is increasing for sustainability purposes. Most of the analysed studies and identified software are still focused on the use of LEED for assessing sustainability during the design phase. However, BIM software capabilities can also support the assessment of the other BSA methods so that process replicability can happen. Among the most addressed criteria, the energy and material-related categories are the most eminent. Autodesk Revit is the most-used software. A BIM-based assessment for SBTool will have enough attractiveness. It can assess, at least, the same percentage of criteria as the other schemes, creating new opportunities to enhance building sustainability.

Development of a building sustainability assessment method (BSAM) for developing countries in sub-Saharan Africa

The consideration of the regional context in the development of green building rating systems is well established in the extant literature, and this informs the development of a sustainability assessment method for sub-Saharan Africa. Hence, a multi-expert consultation method was carried out in Nigeria which is the largest economy in the region. This was performed via a structured questionnaire survey and interview approaches to identify the key sustainability assessment criteria, assign score-weights to the various criteria, and establish the certification grading system of buildings. The developed Building Sustainability Assessment Method (BSAM) scheme and its weighted criteria were validated using two existing building case studies. The established BSAM scheme was compared to six widely used green building rating systems. The comparative analysis reveals that the score-weights and priorities of the BSAM scheme were remarkably different from the existing rating systems. The study findings also show the increasing focus on the indoor environmental quality and energy criteria by all the rating systems. The developed BSAM scheme, meanwhile, has adequately considered the three main pillars of sustainable development unlike the existing green rating tools. Hence, it is expected for the proposed BSAM scheme to promote greener buildings and enhance sustainable urban development in the region.

Optimising building sustainability assessment using BIM

Abstract The construction industry is responsible for various negative impacts on the environment leading to an increasing demand for sustainable buildings. There are several Building Sustainability Assessment (BSA) methods that allow designers to assess and optimise the building sustainability level. Due to the potential of Building Information Modelling (BIM), the opportunity for BSA methods to adopt and benefit from BIM arises. Despite the benefits in the approach simplification for assessing building sustainability, so far the method has not been used comprehensively in the evaluation process. This paper analyses how using BIM can contribute to optimising BSA methods, focusing on the SBToolPT-H. BIM applicability is assessed and a framework for a BIM-based application – SBToolBIM – is proposed. BIM is still not oriented to sustainable building, but it has great potential. For the SBToolPT-H, results show that it is possible to directly and indirectly assess 24 out of 25 criteria using BIM.

New Methods for Sustainable Circular Buildings

Cities can and should be an open field to sustainable circular guidelines since its scale complexity becomes an impact (positive or negative) over the environment as deep as its dimension. On this scenario, construction industry aims to develop products that fulfil also functional requirements and at the same time safety and durability during all the life cycle phases, promoting reversible buildings to avoid constructions obsolescence and recourses’ waste. Most of the Building Sustainability Assessment methods require detail in the input data, hampering their usability at early design stages. So, the paper presents two complementary methods that are being developed to promote early stage sustainability through both sustainability design decision-making guidance and assessment of investment willingness and affordability. The first method enables project teams to compare design alternatives and verify which is the most sustainable choice and alerts them how sustainability concerns are linked to all design criteria, constraints and decisions. The second method is a cost-benefit analysis method to analyse and compare building solutions that consider the stakeholders’ investment willingness and market availability. These new approaches can lead to a more sustainable built environment and contribute to more circular economy since it allows thinking on reversible and transformable buildings since the early design stages choosing solutions closer to the building stakeholders’ investment willingness and the users’ affordability.

Using BIM to optimise and assess the energy efficiency category of SBToolPT-H

The current method for assessing the two indicators of the Energy Efficiency category of the Building Sustainability Assessment method SBToolPT-H (P7: Primary energy, P8: In-situ energy production from renewables) is rather time-consuming. The assessment requires many values that need to be calculated manually or with specific spreadsheets, whenever a design is proposed. When a design alteration is introduced, the whole process needs to be repeated, which leads to designers to be discouraged to develop this task. This research explores the use of the Building Information Modelling (BIM) software – Autodesk Revit and Autodesk Green Building Studio (GBS) – to assess the Energy Efficiency category. The purpose is to find a more efficient assessing method, encouraging and supporting designers to optimise their projects. More efficient methods can contribute to more sustainable constructions and to decrease the construction industry’s environmental impact. To explore if Revit and GBS can streamline the assessment of this SBToolPT-H category, a case study was carried out. A reference building was created which complied with all the current Portuguese regulations. The reference building was then modelled in Revit and submitted to an energy analysis using GBS. The results showed for indicator P7, that the use of GBS and Revit streamlines the assessment by faster extraction of information thanks to the 3D-model and the energy analysis software. However, the assessment could be made even more efficient if the software and national regulations were more matched such as conformity of units and analysed parameters. Concerning indicator P8, the results showed clearly that using GBS is a rather efficient process.

Is the evolution of building sustainability assessment methods promoting the desired sharing of knowledge amongst project stakeholders?

Building sustainability assessment methods (BSAM’s) seek to help project stakeholders understand the predicted and actual sustainability performance of their buildings but are often applied reactively and isolated from project decisions. The last decade has seen BREEAM at the forefront of evolving assessment practice towards a framework approach to help shape project decisions and promote stakeholder learning. The research explores the nature and extent this transition is being realized in practice within four case studies applying BREEAM spanning a 15-year period. Process and knowledge mapping techniques are applied to explore the flow of knowledge required to enable sustainable decisions, stimulate the sharing of understanding, mediation of views and to promote learning amongst stakeholders. Evidence suggested that when applied in progressive projects that the flow of knowledge is strongest when supported by sustainability leadership, a framework approach aligned with project management, an improvement and engagement culture and a strategy for promoting knowledge flow. As practice matures care is needed to ensure engagement remains high and stakeholders are not isolated from the flow of knowledge as projects increasingly rely on sustainability advisors thus losing the opportunity to learn and shape decisions.

Methodology to Identify and Prioritise the Social Aspects to Be Considered in the Design of More Sustainable Residential Buildings—Application to a Developing Country

The priorities in the design of more sustainable buildings are quite dependent on the specific social context. In developing countries, the sustainability concept and priorities in the residential buildings sector are quite different from the ones of the developed countries, since there are still basic needs to answer. Therefore, this research is aimed at contributing to a better understanding of the concept of social sustainability in the residential building sector of the developing countries. A methodology to define and prioritise the social sustainability indicators is proposed and applied in the context of Palestine. The presented methodology is based on the sustainability indicators of international standards, on the most well know building sustainability assessment methods and in the analysis of their application to a specific context. It includes a methodology to prioritise the list of social indicators, by considering the expectations of two groups of building stakeholders: designers and building users. At the end, this research proposes a framework of social aspects to consider in the design of more sustainable residential buildings in West Bank, Palestine that is composed of twenty-one indicators, distributed among six sustainability categories and ranked according to their weight in the overall of sustainability level.

Development of a sustainability assessment method for buildings – the OPEN HOUSE case

PurposeThe paper aims to present the core part of the research work done within the FP7 OPEN HOUSE project, aiming to merge existing methodologies for sustainability assessment of buildings towards a common view, applicable as an open access assessment method across European Union (EU). One of the principle tasks was to evaluate the applicability of proposed indicators in EU countries with different legal frameworks, climate conditions, status and condition of the building stock and construction tradition.Design/methodology/approachTo reach the goal, it had to be established first whether the pre-selected indicators suit the purpose in countries different from each other regarding various influential factors. A questionnaire survey based on close-ended quantitative thematic questions was performed to evaluate the acceptability and relevance of each indicator in national contexts, thus defining the path for the final protocol of selection criteria for the OPEN HOUSE method.FindingsThe responses enabled and justified necessary minor corrections and regrouping to define the full (56 indicators) and core (30 indicators) indicator sets, demonstrating that the system is applicable in EU countries. This task made ground for finalisation of the OPEN HOUSE method: definition of evaluation procedures and sustainability performance levels and testing of the approach on demo cases.Originality/valueThis paper shows how the research team tackled the problem of limited use of building sustainability assessment methods due to specific boundary conditions by determining a widely applicable set of categories and related indicators based upon an extensive analysis of existing assessment methods, standardisation development, formal guidelines and strategic (inter)national frameworks.

Healthcare Building Sustainability Assessment tool - Sustainable Effective Design criteria in the Portuguese context

Tools and methods to improve current practices and quality in the healthcare building sector are necessary to support decision-making at different building life cycle phases. Furthermore, Healthcare Building Sustainability Assessment (HBSA) Methods are based on criteria organised into different levels, such as categories and indicators. These criteria highlight aspects of significant importance when designing and operating a sustainable healthcare building. To bring more objectivity to the sustainability assessments, the standardisation bodies (CEN and ISO) proposed core indicators that should be used in the evaluation of the environmental, societal and economic performances of buildings. Nevertheless, relying on state of the art analysis, it is possible to conclude that there are aspects of major importance for the operation of healthcare buildings that are not considered in the HBSA methods.Thus, the aim of this paper is to discuss the context of sustainability assessment methods in the field of healthcare buildings and to present a proposal for the incorporation of Sustainable-Effective Design (SED) criteria in a new HBSA method. The used research method is innovative since in the development of the list of sustainability criteria it considers the opinion of main healthcare buildings' stakeholders, the existing healthcare assessment methods and the ISO and CEN standardisation works in the field of the methods to assess the sustainability of construction works. As a result, the proposed method is composed of fifty-two sustainability indicators that cover the different dimensions of the sustainability concept to support decision making during the design of a new or retrofitted healthcare building in urban areas.

Development of a healthcare building sustainability assessment method – Proposed structure and system of weights for the Portuguese context

In healthcare building projects, it is necessary to consider a larger number of different aspects than in other building types, as patients' emotions, comfort needs and the integration of latest technologies. To design these buildings, considering a sustainable approach, the sustainable practices for healthcare building should be considered properly in design and use phases.Therefore, there is a lack of common understanding on the field of various relations between built, natural and social systems. To tackle this, the goal of this article is to contribute to the better understanding in this context by exposing a proposal for the structure and system of weights of the sustainability criteria of a healthcare building sustainability assessment method, the HBSAtool-PT. The methodological approach adopted is innovative since in the development of the list of sustainability criteria it considers the opinion of main healthcare buildings’ stakeholders, the existing healthcare assessment methods and the ISO and CEN standardisation works in the field of the methods to assess the sustainability of construction works. Additionally, a methodology to develop the weighting system to be used in the aggregation of the different indicators is proposed and applied to the Portuguese context. As a result, the proposed sustainability assessment system for healthcare buildings (HBSAtool-PT) embraces fifty-two sustainability indicators that cover the different dimensions of the sustainability concept to support decision making during the design of a new or retrofitted healthcare building in urban areas. The proposed structure for the HBSAtool-PT presents a more balanced structure between the dimensions of the sustainable development, and compared with other existing approaches, it integrates more comprehensive social and economic concerns.

A Contextual Framework for the Development of a Building Sustainability Assessment Method for Iran

As one of the fastest growing countries in the Middle East, and the one most vulnerable to climate change, the main challenge now facing Iran today is how to house its growing population in a socially, economically, and environmentally sustainable way. However, in the absence of a national framework to guide the sustainable development of the built environment, responding to this challenge is problematic. The articulation of a comprehensive assessment method that would enable issues of sustainability to be addressed and incorporated within building construction projects is urgently required. The research that underpins this paper takes account of current tools in aiming to support the development of a national building sustainability assessment method (BSAM) for use in Iran that involves the identification of sources of impact, specific benchmarks, and priorities for a weighting system for assessment criteria. This paper profiles the basis of a contextual framework that will inform the development of such a regional-based tool, taking account of Iran’s current climate change adaptation policies and priorities, its environmental conditions and socio-economic challenges, building typologies, standards and benchmarks.

Development of Benchmarks for Operating Costs and Resources Consumption to be Used in Healthcare Building Sustainability Assessment Methods

Since the last decade of the twentieth century, the healthcare industry is paying attention to the environmental impact of their buildings and therefore new regulations, policy goals, and Building Sustainability Assessment (HBSA) methods are being developed and implemented. At the present, healthcare is one of the most regulated industries and it is also one of the largest consumers of energy per net floor area. To assess the sustainability of healthcare buildings it is necessary to establish a set of benchmarks related with their life-cycle performance. They are both essential to rate the sustainability of a project and to support designers and other stakeholders in the process of designing and operating a sustainable building, by allowing the comparison to be made between a project and the conventional and best market practices. This research is focused on the methodology to set the benchmarks for resources consumption, waste production, operation costs and potential environmental impacts related to the operational phase of healthcare buildings. It aims at contributing to the reduction of the subjectivity found in the definition of the benchmarks used in Building Sustainability Assessment (BSA) methods, and it is applied in the Portuguese context. These benchmarks will be used in the development of a Portuguese HBSA method.

A critical analysis of building sustainability assessment methods for healthcare buildings

The healthcare building project contains different aspects from the most common projects. Designing a healthcare environment is based on a number of criteria related to the satisfaction and well-being of the professional working teams, patients and administrators. Mostly due to various design requirements, these buildings are rarely designed and operated in a sustainable way. Therefore, the sustainable development is a concept whose importance has grown significantly in the last decade in this sector. The worldwide economic crisis reinforces the growing environmental concerns as well as raising awareness among people to a necessary and inevitable shift in the values of their society. To support sustainable building design, several building sustainability assessment (BSA) methods are being developed worldwide. Since healthcare buildings are rather complex systems than other buildings, so specific methods were developed for them. These methods are aimed to support decision-making towards the introduction of the best sustainability practices during the design and operation phases of a healthcare environment. However, the comparison between the results of different methods is difficult, if not impossible, since they address different environmental, societal and economic criteria, and they emphasize different phases of the life cycle. Therefore, the aim of this study was to clarify the differences between the main BSA methods for healthcare buildings by analysing and categorizing them. Furthermore, the benefits of these methods in promoting a more sustainable environment will be analysed, and the current situation of them within the context of standardization of the concept sustainable construction will be discussed.