A whole-life value based assessment and optimisation model for high-performance glazed facades'

Façade design is a complex and multi-disciplinary process. One major barrier to devising optimal façade solutions is the lack of a systematic way of evaluating the true social, economic and environmental impacts of a design. Another barrier is the lack of automated design aids to assist decision-making. In this paper, we present our on-going study in developing a whole-life value based multi-objective optimisation model for high-performance façades. The principal outcome of this paper is a multi-objective optimisation model for early-stage façade design. The optimisation technique coupled with other 3rd party software and/or specially developed scripts provide façade designers with an integrated design tool of wide applicability.

Evidence-based design of timber facades’.

Conference paper on a CD-Rom

Paddy Hartley: of faces and facades

Paddy Hartley's work is primarily concerned with the ways in which the human face can be repaired, manipulated and recontextualised, and the questions these processes raise about our concepts of beauty and disfigurement. Incorporating surgical and pharmaceutical equipment as well as steel, scrap metal, digital embroidery and textiles, Hartley sets out a critique of how we think about the face today. Taking as a starting point records of facially injured servicemen of the First World War and the pioneering surgery they underwent, Project Facade examines the impact of disfigurement on the human psyche, as well as tracing the development of early facial reconstructive surgery. His Face Corsets, meanwhile, examines attitudes towards cosmetic surgery and the beauty industry, providing a non-surgical means to brutally mimic the results of cosmetic procedures and beyond. The series gained notoriety and success in a wide variety of popular publications both nationally and internationally, and continue to feature in contemporary textiles and fashion publications. Paddy Hartley: Of Faces and Facades brings together these works in book form for the first time, presenting previously unpublished texts from David Houston Jones and Marjorie Gehrhardt, as well as drawings and photographs which document a remarkable creative process and a history that is still insufficiently explored.

Methodology of CO2 emission evaluation in the life cycle of office building facades

The construction industry is one of the greatest sources of pollution because of the high level of energy consumption during its life cycle. In addition to using energy while constructing a building, several systems also use power while the building is operating, especially the air-conditioning system. Energy consumption for this system is related, among other issues, to external air temperature and the required internal temperature of the building. The facades are elements which present the highest level of ambient heat transfer from the outside to the inside of tall buildings. Thus, the type of facade has an influence on energy consumption during the building life cycle and, consequently, contributes to buildings' CO2 emissions, because these emissions are directly connected to energy consumption. Therefore, the aim is to help develop a methodology for evaluating CO2 emissions generated during the life cycle of office building facades. The results, based on the parameters used in this study, show that facades using structural glazing and uncolored glass emit the most CO2 throughout their life cycle, followed by brick facades covered with compound aluminum panels or ACM (Aluminum Composite Material), facades using structural glazing and reflective glass and brick facades with plaster coating. On the other hand, the typology of facade that emits less CO2 is brickwork and mortar because its thermal barrier is better than structural glazing facade and materials used to produce this facade are better than brickwork and ACM. Finally, an uncertainty analysis was conducted to verify the accuracy of the results attained. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Environmental analysis of residential building facades through energy consumption, GHG emissions and costs

This paper provides some results on the potential to minimize environmental impacts in residential buildings life cycle, through façade design strategies, analyzing also their impact on costs from a lifecycle perspective. On one hand, it assesses the environmental damage produced by the materials of the building envelope, and on the other, the benefits they offer in terms of habitability and liveability in the use phase. The analysis includes several design parameters used both for rehabilitation of existing facades, as for new facades, trying to cover various determinants and proposing project alternatives. With this study we intended to contribute to address the energy challenges for the coming years, trying also to propose pathways for innovative solutions for the building envelope.

Quality assurance for precast plants and treatment of imperfections for architectural facades

Quality is the threshold or minimum level required to satisfy the consumer´s demands. In construction the quality is objective, and established by standards. It is very difficult to establish the costs of “no quality” in construction. Each precast unit shall be traceable to a specific set of quality control records.

Influence of loudspeaker directivity on the measurement uncertainty of the acoustic testing of facades.

One of the most significant aspects of a building?s acoustic behavior is the airborne sound insulation of the room façades, since this determines the protection of its inhabitants against environmental noise. For this reason, authorities in most countries have established in their acoustic regulations for buildings the minimum value of sound insulation that must be respected for façades. In order to verify compliance with legal requirements it is usual to perform acoustic measurements in the finished buildings and then compare the measurement results with the established limits. Since there is always a certain measurement uncertainty, this uncertainty must be calculated and taken into account in order to ensure compliance with specifications. The most commonly used method for measuring sound insulation on façades is the so-called Global Loudspeaker Method, specified in ISO 140-5:1998. This method uses a loudspeaker placed outside the building as a sound source. The loudspeaker directivity has a significant influence on the measurement results, and these results may change noticeably by choosing different loudspeakers, even though they all fulfill the directivity requirements of ISO 140-5. This work analyzes the influence of the loudspeaker directivity on the results of façade sound insulation measurement, and determines its contribution to measurement uncertainty. The theoretical analysis is experimentally validated by means of an intermediate precision test according to ISO 5725-3:1994, which compares the values of sound insulation obtained for a façade using various loudspeakers with different directivities. Keywords: Uncertainty, Façade, Insulation

Review and analysis of solar thermal facades

Harnessing solar energy to provide for the thermal needs of buildings is one of the most promising solutions to the global energy issue. Exploiting the additional surface area provided by the building’s façade can significantly increase the solar energy output. Developing a range of integrated and adaptable products that do not significantly affect the building’s aesthetics is vital to enabling the building integrated solar thermal market to expand and prosper. This work reviews and evaluates solar thermal facades in terms of the standard collector type, which they are based on, and their component make-up. Daily efficiency models are presented, based on a combination of the Hottel Whillier Bliss model and finite element simulation. Novel and market available solar thermal systems are also reviewed and evaluated using standard evaluation methods, based on experimentally determined parameters ISO 9806. Solar thermal collectors integrated directly into the facade benefit from the additional wall insulation at the back; displaying higher efficiencies then an identical collector offset from the facade. Unglazed solar thermal facades with high capacitance absorbers (e.g. concrete) experience a shift in peak maximum energy yield and display a lower sensitivity to ambient conditions than the traditional metallic based unglazed collectors. Glazed solar thermal facades, used for high temperature applications (domestic hot water), result in overheating of the building’s interior which can be reduced significantly through the inclusion of high quality wall insulation. For low temperature applications (preheating systems), the cheaper unglazed systems offer the most economic solution. The inclusion of brighter colour for the glazing and darker colour for the absorber shows the lowest efficiency reductions (<4%). Novel solar thermal façade solutions include solar collectors integrated into balcony rails, shading devices, louvers, windows or gutters.

Living walls - a way to green the built environment

Actions Towards Sustainable Outcomes Environmental Issues/Principal Impacts The increasing urbanisation of cities brings with it several detrimental consequences, such as: • Significant energy use for heating and cooling many more buildings has led to urban heat islands and increased greenhouse gas emissions. • Increased amount of hard surfaces, which not only contributes to higher temperatures in cities, but also to increased stormwater runoff. • Degraded air quality and noise. • Health and general well-being of people is frequently compromised, by inadequate indoor air quality. • Reduced urban biodiversity. Basic Strategies In many design situations, boundaries and constraints limit the application of cutting EDGe actions. In these circumstances, designers should at least consider the following: • Living walls are an emerging technology, and many Australian examples function more as internal feature walls. However,as understanding of the benefits and construction of living walls develops this technology could be part of an exterior facade that enhances a building’s thermal performance. • Living walls should be designed to function with an irrigation system using non-potable water. Cutting EDGe Strategies • Living walls can be part of a design strategy that effectively improves the thermal performance of a building, thereby contributing to lower energy use and greenhouse gas emissions. • Including living walls in the initial stages of design would provide greater flexibility to the design, especially of the facade, structural supports, mechanical ventilation and watering systems, thus lowering costs. • Designing a building with an early understanding of living walls can greatly reduce maintenance costs. • Including plant species and planting media that would be able to remove air impurities could contribute to improved indoor air quality, workplace productivity and well-being. Synergies and References • Living walls are a key research topic at the Centre for Subtropical Design, Queensland University of Technology: http://www.subtropicaldesign.bee.qut.edu.au • BEDP Environment Design Guide: DES 53: Roof and Facade Gardens • BEDP Environment Design Guide: GEN 4: Positive Development – Designing for Net Positive Impacts (see green scaffolding and green space frame walls). • Green Roofs Australia: www.greenroofs.wordpress.com • Green Roofs for Healthy Cities USA: www.greenroofs.org

Seismic mitigation of building structural systems using passive dampers

This paper treats the seismic mitigation of medium rise frame-shear wall structures and building facade systems using passive damping devices. The frame shear wall structures have embedded viscoelastic and friction dampers in different configurations and placed in various locations in the structure. Influence of damper type, configuration and location are investigated. Results for tip deflections which provide an overall evaluation of the seismic response of the structure, are determined. Seismic mitigation of building facade systems in which visco-elastic dampers are fitted at the horizontal connections between the facades and the frame, instead of the traditional rigid connections, are also treated. Finite element techniques are used to model and analyse the two structural systems under different earthquake loadings, scaled to the same peak ground acceleration for meaningful comparison of responses. Results demonstrate the feasibility of these techniques for seismic mitigation.

The significance of balcony acoustic treatments in mitigating urban road traffic noise

Urban road traffic noise in cities is an ongoing and increasing problem across much of the world. Consequently a large amount of effort is expended in attempts to address this problem, especially in the area of acoustic design of buildings. Acoustic design policies developed by government authorities will typically focus on required transport noise reductions through a building façade to meet a specified internal noise levels. The significance of balcony acoustic treatments has been highlighted in recent decades yet this area has potentially been considered less important than the need for acoustic isolation of building facades. This paper outlines recent research that has been conducted in determining the significance of balcony acoustic treatments in mitigating urban road traffic noise. It summarizes recent literature, some of which focuses on technological advances in the knowledge of balcony acoustic design and some literature discusses the overall aims and benefits of balcony acoustic design. The aim of this paper is to promote the use of balcony acoustic design as a significant element in the overall solution towards mitigating road traffic noise in modern cities.