Construction Of Office Buildings Research Articles

Energy and sustainable development in Nigeria: the way forward

Access to clean modern energy services is an enormous challenge facing the African continent because energy is fundamental for socioeconomic development and poverty eradication. Today, 60% to 70% of the Nigerian population does not have access to electricity. There is no doubt that the present power crisis afflicting Nigeria will persist unless the government diversifies the energy sources in domestic, commercial, and industrial sectors and adopts new available technologies to reduce energy wastages and to save cost. This review examines a set of energy policy interventions, which can make a major contribution to the sustainable economic, environmental, and social development of Africa's most populated country, Nigeria. Energy efficiency leads to important social benefits, such as reducing the energy bills for poor households. From an economic point of view, implementing the country's renewable energy target will have significant costs, but these can partly be offset by selling carbon credits according to the rules of the ‘Clean Development Mechanism’ agreed some 10 years ago, which will result in indirect health benefits.Nigeria could benefit from the targeted interventions that would reduce the local air pollution and help the country to tackle greenhouse gas emissions. Many factors that need to be considered and appropriately addressed in the shift to its sustainable energy future are examined in this article. These include a full exploitation and promotion of renewable energy resources, energy efficiency practices, as well as the application of energy conservation measures in various sectors such as in the construction of industrial, residential, and office buildings, in transportation, etc.

A Comparative Cradle-to-Gate Life Cycle Assessment of Mid-Rise Office Building Construction Alternatives: Laminated Timber or Reinforced Concrete

The objective of this project was to quantify and compare the environmental impacts associated with alternative designs for a typical North American mid-rise office building. Two scenarios were considered; a traditional cast-in-place, reinforced concrete frame and a laminated timber hybrid design, which utilized engineered wood products (cross-laminated timber (CLT) and glulam). The boundary of the quantitative analysis was cradle-to-construction site gate and encompassed the structural support system and the building enclosure. Floor plans, elevations, material quantities, and structural loads associated with a five-storey concrete-framed building design were obtained from issued-for-construction drawings. A functionally equivalent, laminated timber hybrid design was conceived, based on Canadian Building Code requirements. Design values for locally produced CLT panels were established from in-house material testing. Primary data collected from a pilot-scale manufacturing facility was used to develop the life cycle inventory for CLT, whereas secondary sources were referenced for other construction materials. The TRACI characterization methodology was employed to translate inventory flows into impact indicators. The results indicated that the laminated timber building design offered a lower environmental impact in 10 of 11 assessment categories. The cradle-to-gate process energy was found to be nearly identical in both design scenarios (3.5 GJ/m2), whereas the cumulative embodied energy (feedstock plus process) of construction materials was estimated to be 8.2 and 4.6 GJ/m2 for the timber and concrete designs, respectively; which indicated an increased availability of readily accessible potential energy stored within the building materials of the timber alternative.

Environmental Life Cycle Analysis of Office Buildings in Canada

 Abstract—In order to design sustainable and environmental friendly buildings, the impacts of the building on environment through its life cycle must be analyzed. Life cycle assessment is the best method to achieve this purpose. However, design and construction of office buildings is often not conducted with an assessment of life cycle environmental impacts. This paper presents a framework to assess the environmental emissions of office building through its life cycle stages which are: raw materials acquisition and manufacturing, construction, use / reuse / maintenance and end-of-life (recycle / waste management). The Environmental impact measured in Primary Energy (MJ), Solid Waste (Kg), Air Emission (index), Water Emissions (index), Global Warming Potential(GWP) (Kg) and Weighted Resource Use. Life cycle assessment framework of this study applied to an eight story office building in Canada. Then to observe the performance of the life cycle assessment method of the present study, alternatives to the base office building components are explored. The pre-cast concrete substituted with base office building floor and tilt up concrete with wall components. For the envelope components, triple glazed windows have been chosen to substitute with the windows of the base office. The results showed that the pre-cast and Tilt-up office Building had less impact on environment.

扁平柱を利用した免震事務所ビルの設計と施工

高い耐震性能を確保し，空間計画や外装デザインと構造架構形式を整合させるため，鉄筋コンクリート造の扁平柱を利用した架構形式を開発し，都内中央区8階建て事務所建築に本架構形式を導入した。本稿では，本建築物の構造計画および工事を報告する。RC造の扁平柱を用いた建物外周フレームを構造要素とし，免震構造と組み合わせることで，執務空間に柱型が出てこない事務所建築を計画した。設計するにあたり，柱梁接合部の構造実験を行い性能を確認した。また，鉄筋の先組化を計画し，機械式継手を使用することで，複雑な接合部配筋を可能とした。

Comparison of building load performance between first principle based and implementable shading control algorithms

This paper presents the findings on the impact of two window shading control strategies on office building thermal and lighting loads over a year’s period through energy simulation in four different climatic contexts in the United States. While it is well known that window shades affect heat gain and loss through windows and thus building energy loads, there is limited information on the actual magnitude and specific behavior of their effects on the building thermal and lighting loads. The objective of the described study is to generalize the magnitude of the impact from window shading control strategies on building thermal and lighting loads over a year by modeling a representative office building construction in indicative geographical locations as well as internal window shades representative of those that are commonly used. Two control algorithms are developed and evaluated which are the ideal algorithm and implementable. The basic principle of both algorithms is to maximize heat gain and minimize heat loss when the building is in heating condition, and performs the opposite when the building is in cooling condition, subject to glare control. Some of the information that is used in the ideal algorithm is not available for a “real world” controller. Therefore, an implementable shading control algorithm is also described, which will take sensor measurable conditions as input. EnergyPlus is used to conduct the thermal and lighting loads computation. The control algorithm is implemented through the BCVTB (Building Control Virtual Test Bed). BCVTB is a software environment that allows expert users to couple different simulation programs for distributed simulation.

La Plaine Saint-Denis : un ancien territoire industriel au centre des contradictions métropolitaines. (La Plaine Saint-Denis : a former industrial area at the heart of metropolitan contradictions)

How to regenerate a former industrial area with a rich history and give it urban and social cohesion ? This is the challenge facing the Saint-Denis Plain. The Parisian overspill is making its mark here in the setting up of innovative activities, and the construction of housing, office buildings and amenities. One consequence of this is the rise in land and properly prices, with a subsequent widening of the socio-economic divide. The impoverishment of households, often of immigrant origin, confined to rundown housing blocks, is in stark contrast to the gentrification of entire, newly-constructed sectors. It could be argued that tensions between social exclusion and metropolitan integration should be considered when altering scale, as in the case of Greater Paris...

The Bellevue crane disaster

This paper describes an investigation of the cause and origin of the November 16, 2006 collapse of an overhead tower crane at an office building construction site in Bellevue, WA. This accident, and several others during the same timeframe, triggered national concern regarding crane safety. The collapse was curious because the crane overturned with no load on the hook under negligible winds while the operator was in the process of shutting the crane down for the night. This paper summarizes a comprehensive investigation of the failure, and focuses on the steel framework of the crane foundation, where a large fatigue crack initiated the collapse. The foundation was an unconventional grillage of steel beams attached to an existing concrete structure that supported the crane above post-tensioned concrete parking slabs. Analysis of the crane failure embraced three phases; namely, a Global Model to calculate generalized forces and displacements, a refined local model to calculate elasto-plastic stresses at the crack initiation site, and a fatigue/fracture mechanics analysis to investigate the criteria for crack progression. A suite of metallurgical procedures, namely chemical analysis, metallography, scanning electron microscopy, hardness testing, tensile testing, and Charpy V-Notch impact testing was performed on samples from failed foundation elements. Results of these efforts confirmed origins of fatigue cracking at the cope web stiffeners in both transverse tower support beams. Allegations that faulty welding was the principal cause and origin of the critical crack(s) and resulting tower crane foundation failure were disproved. Instead, this crane accident occurred for a reason common to many construction problems - poor communication. The crane foundation designer had relied on a structural tie between the crane tower and the building core, but communication of the contractor’s decision to delay the core construction, and thereby eliminate the tie, was somehow lost.

A total building performance approach to evaluating building acoustics performance

Acoustic comfort is an important consideration in the design and construction of office buildings. Since the acoustic performance of a building will affect its inhabitants psychologically, sociologically and physiologically, post-occupancy evaluations of acoustic performance are often necessary to ensure that acoustic design features are effective. Since acoustic quality is often affected by the interplay among the building's interior, structural, envelope and mechanical systems, it is critical to assess acoustic quality in an integrated manner. This article presents a detailed acoustic evaluation of a three-storeyed office building by adopting a total building performance (TBP) approach. Through plan/archive analysis, expert walkthrough, objective acoustic measurements and analysis, the existing acoustic problems are identified. Subjective views of occupants regarding acoustic quality in the office and warehouse spaces are also sought. It was found that both objective and subjective data support each other. By understanding how these problems are caused by the interactions among the different building systems, specific solutions were proposed. In summary, this work highlights the usefulness of using a TBP concept to diagnose the acoustic quality of a multi-storeyed office building in an integrated manner. This project is motivated by an effort to promote workplace comfort and sustainability within the framework of corporate social responsibility.

Aplikasi Value Engineering pada Proyek Konstruksi (Studi Kasus: Proyek Pembangunan Gedung BPKP Yogyakarta)

Construction of a building project or the others structures needs cost, so that the project can be realized. Before an owner continues the project to the design or construction steps, the cost must be provided. The cost often becomes a problem because amount of the cost is limited to realize a construction project. The objective of this study is to select good alternative materials without declining the quality and function of the building as well as to find the value of cost efficiency on the Project of the BPK’s Office Building Construction of Yogyakarta by Value Engineering method. Value Engineering is a management thenique with systematic approach for finding the balance among cost, reliability, and performance of a product or a project. The study on the Project of the BPKP’s Office Building Construction of Yogyakarta was done on the structure work only, namely: plate, beam, column and sloof works with giving alternative materials for getting the best alternative by work plan of Value Engineering. The Value Engineering method was applied on structure components by systematic and creative approach trough work plan of Value Engineering using the following steps: an information, functional analysis, creative, development, writing and presentation steps. All steps were done continuesly and the result was expected giving efficiency from the previous design. From the application of Value Engineering, it is concluded that the cost efficiency is about 2.53% of total cost of structure work by application.

COMPARISON OF ENERGY CONSUMPTION AND CO2 EMISSION DUE TO BUILDING CONSTRUCTION BETWEEN CHINA AND JAPAN

Energy consumption and CO2 emission due to construction of buildings in China and Japan are described in this report. As more than 400 industrial sectors are contained in Japanese IO table and 30 sectors in Chinese IO tables, energy consumption and CO2 intensities of dominant materials used in building are derived from energy consumption in factories and equipments are derived from IO analysis. Energy and CO2 intensities of main materials used in building construction in China and Japan and the calculation methods are shown in this report. Office buildings in both countries are calculated as a case study. The intensities of materials in China are 2-3 times larger than Japan and energy consumption and CO2 emission due to construction of office building in China is 10-20% larger than in Japan. Though energy consumption of structure in China is 2-3 times larger than in Japan, interior finish works and equipments for air conditioning etc. are smaller. Energy consumption due to Chinese office building construction are almost same as Japanese.

Energy and environmental indicators related to construction of office buildings

Buildings’ construction has a major determining role on the environment through consumption of land and raw materials and generation of waste. It is also a significant user of non-renewable energy and an emitter of greenhouse gases and other gaseous wastes. As environmental issues continue to become increasingly significant, buildings become more energy efficient and the energy needs for their operation decreases. Thus, the energy required for construction and consequently, for the material production, is getting of greater importance. The present paper investigates the role of different construction materials and quantifies them in terms of the embodied energy and the equivalent emissions of CO 2 and SO 2 in contemporary office buildings. It also assesses the importance of the embodied energy of the building's structure as compared to the operational energy of the building. It was shown that the embodied energy of the structure's building materials (concrete and reinforcement steel) represents the largest component in the building's total embodied energy of the examined buildings, varing from 66.73% to 59.57%, while the embodied energy of the building envelope's materials represents a lower but significant proportion of the building's total embodied energy. When the construction elements are examined, the slabs have the higher contribution at the embodied energy of the studied buildings and from the envelope elements, the external wall is contributing the maximum in the overall embodied energy of the building. The embodied energy correspondence varies between 12.55 and 18.50% of the energy needed for the operation of an office building over a 50 years life.

Efficient Dual-Function Solar/Electric Light Guide to Enable Cost-Effective Core Daylighting

As a component of our cost-effective core daylighting research program, we have developed a hollow light guide that can be used to distribute sunlight collected by a heliostat device, and can also operate as an efficient fluorescent light fixture when the sunlight is insufficient to illuminate the workspace. This dual-function prism light guide structure has a cross-section that is similar to standard commercial fluorescent light fixtures, but with an increased depth in order to pipe the sunlight. The bottom surface of the guide is lined with a thin polycarbonate film having prismatic surface features, while the top and sides are lined with a highly-reflective multilayer optical film having a luminous reflectance greater than 98 percent. The angular constraints of the concentrated sunlight, combined with the high reflectance of the surfaces, enable the sunlight to be efficiently transported within the guide along a distance of greater than 10 m. The guide can also illuminate the room using electric sources, since the light from the lamps strikes the prismatic bottom surface at angles for which it is an efficient transmitter. Photometric characterization of the new dual-function guide has been performed, resulting in illuminance levels, uniformity and efficiency values well within recommended standards. The dual-function design approach has yielded a daylighting system that can be cost-effectively incorporated into standard office building construction.

Competing explanations for adopting energy innovations for new office buildings

An integrative model to explain potential adopters’ decisions to adopt energy innovations was adapted and applied in the field of new office building construction. We tested the relative effects of competing theoretical explanations (derived from economics, innovation science and policy science) on the decision to adopt. The research covered 35 projects representing 9% of the total volume of new office construction in the Netherlands between 2000 and mid-2002. Two levels of explanations for adopting innovations were derived: (a) the potential adopter's weighed assessments of the innovations and his or her nature of decision making and (b) explanation of those first-level variables. Using multiple regression techniques, we determined the relative influence on innovation-adoption of variables covering economy and technology, government intervention, company characteristics, and influences from market and society. The decision to adopt ‘mature’ innovations, in contrast to ‘young’ innovations, is based more on routine procedures than project-specific considerations. Policies need to take this difference into consideration. We also show evidence that in promoting adoption of E-innovations for new office buildings the Dutch system of applying Energy Performance Standards and subsidies proofs to be effective.

Fire resistance performance of profiled steel sheet dry board (PSSDB) flooring panel system

This paper investigates the fire resistance performance of an innovative composite panel system known as the profiled steel sheet dry board (PSSDB) system. Four different floor panel samples with various infill and surface treatment materials have been tested under load-bearing condition. The tests were conducted in accordance with BS476: Part 21. Results of these tests show that the PSSDB system possesses good fire resistance performance. The system can easily meet the requirements of the Malaysian Building By-laws to be used in the construction of residential, office, and many other common buildings. Among the tested samples, the panel filled and covered by normal concrete was shown to have the best fire resistance performance.

An Investigation into the Construction Performance of High-Rise Commercial Office Buildings Based on Productivity and Resource Consumption

This paper considers recent findings on the comparative performance of high-rise commercial office building construction worldwide. The research comprised a survey of 78 real projects across twelve countries. The proposed hypothesis that increased unit costs, which reflect more complexity or higher quality, translate into decreased productivity rates was not proven to be a strong relationship. A number of other relationships were found to demonstrate strong correlations. The paper concludes by establishing a performance index methodology that can be used to compare construction performance across projects.

Estimation of life cycle energy consumption and CO 2 emission of office buildings in Japan

The purpose of this study is to quantify the total amount of energy consumption and CO 2 emission caused by the construction, operation, maintenance, and renovation of office buildings in Japan. In order to quantify the life cycle energy consumption and CO 2 emission of a building, it is necessary to obtain an estimate of the total quantity of domestic products and services used directly or indirectly (including the repercussion effect of the economy) during the life cycle of the building. The Input/Output (I/O) Table of Japan is used to calculate the total domestic product and then energy consumption and CO 2 emission are estimated by using energy consumption and CO 2 emission data for unit production of various categories of industries.

An economic analysis of transferable development rights

Introduction Down zoning regulation policy is liked by urban planners as a powerful tool of the urban growth control. This policy takes the form of constrained floor-area ratio (FAR) which is set below the FAR determined by a free market, and by doing so it aims to suppress the construction of office buildings within a specific city. For economists it is almost self-evident that such physical regulation produces inefficiency of resource allocation by distorting free ground-rent formation in t...

Proposed Concepts for Floor Framing Systems for Precast/Prestressed Concrete Office Buildings

This paper summarizes progress on research at the Center for Advanced Technology for Large Structural Systems (ATLSS) on gravity load floor systems for precast/prestressed concrete buildings. The main objective of the research is to develop precast/prestressed concrete floor systems for gravity loads for application in occupied office buildings with a regular spacing of columns. Five proposed concepts for precast/prestressed structural floor framing systems that are suitable for office building construction are presented. The concepts were developed based on previous research that included a review and assessment of existing precast/prestressed concrete floor framing systems and an identification of opportunities for the development of new precast structural systems. The proposed systems differ in relative amounts of prefabrication vs. field work, and in the manner in which the service and architectural systems are accommodated.

超高層建築の施工における資材揚重計画手法とその評価に関する研究

This paper describes about vertical transportation of building materials using high-speed temporary elevator for highrise office building construction. Surveying and analysing of the past constructions, a new method to estimate the times of vertical transportation for building construction was proposed. Applying this method to some current constructions, it is confirmed that this method is available for practical use.

The Danger Of Unsubstantiated Assumptions - Indoor Air Quality

This Particular Case Revolved Around An Incident In An Art Department At A Large Television Station. The Plaintiff Contended That Her Exposure To Harmful Chemicals In The Art Department Had Caused Her Serious Brain Damage And Was Suing For A Significant Amount From All Of The Manufacturers Of The Products Used In The Art Department. The Author Represented Just One Of The Manufacturers Of A Product. The Plaintiffs Expert, An Industrial Hygienist, Had Contended That The Plaintiff Had Been Exposed To Considerably Greater Levels Of Toxicity Than Permitted Under The Osha Or Niosh Regulations. He Even Provided Copious Calculations Substantiating His Allegations. However, The Plaintiffs Expert Had Based All Of His Calculations On The Assumption That The Art Department Had Been Typical Office Building Construction And, Therefore, He Assumed In Typical Office Buildings The Outside Air Provided To The Occupied Space Was Approximately Five Cfm Per Person. The Plaintiffs Expert Also Contended That The Air Was Returned And Recirculated. Furthermore, Plaintiffs Expert Contended That The Air Delivery Could Not Be More Than What He Had Assumed Because Air At Greater Than 35 Fpm Velocity Will Blow Papers Off The Desks. All Of His Calculations Were Based On These Critical Assumptions.