sustainabilty

The Residential HVAC Load Calculation Extension software system is a residential and light commercial HVAC load calculation software package based upon the ASHRAE 2001 Fundamentals algorithms (Chapter 28). This program is geared specifically toward the design/build mechanical contractor, design mechanical engineer, and architects.

The purpose of this software is to provide the user with total cooling and heating loads for a building so that they may properly specify the correct size HVAC equipment (whether it is a packaged rooftop unit or a boiler).

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Using Green Build With Revit Whitepaper by Autodesk

This document helps you get started with Autodesk® Green
Building Studio® web service and presents the fundamental
concepts of the product, including:

• Defining Autodesk Green Building Studio
• Why you should use Green Building Studio
• Common pitfalls, and making the most of Green Building Studio energy analysis
• How Green Building Studio works
• Registration and installation
• How to perform some common tasks in the product
• Energy results and what they mean

1. Inputs for HVAC system characteristics such as supply cooling and heating temperatures, ventilation rates, fan characteristics, cooling and heating setpoints, duct sizing, and safety factors
2. Inputs for HVAC area (room) characteristics such as wall, window, roof, door, skylight, and partition areas. In addition, there are inputs for # of people, electrical appliances, infiltration, lighting, miscellaneous, exhaust, and plenum loads
3. Weather data from over 800 cities throughout the world
4. A complete u-value database for common wall, roof, window, floor, and door types
5. A complete appliance list for determining internal electrical equipment load contributions
6. Many reports including summary, detailed, psychrometric, wall/window breakdown, 24-hour load breakdown, and graphical reports
7. A feature that allows the user to export all inputs and outputs to custom Microsoft Word and Excel documents
8. Equipment selection
9. Support for both English (IP) and Metric (SI) units

http://www.squ1.com/SAN RAFAEL, Calif., June 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- As part of its on-going commitment to support the practice of sustainable design and green building in the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industries, Autodesk announced another acquisition to improve building performance analysis in the building information modeling (BIM) process. Autodesk announced that it has completed the acquisition of substantially all the assets related to the Ecotect software tools for conceptual building performance analysis from both Square One Research Ltd. and Dr. Andrew Marsh.The acquisitions of Ecotect and the Green Building Studio assets will support Autodesk's vision to deliver software that enables architects and engineers to design more sustainable projects. With improved building performance analysis capabilities, Autodesk will be uniquely positioned to offer a comprehensive suite of software solutions for sustainable design and analysis, enabling a BIM process that can facilitate cost-effective design and delivery of high-performing, resource-efficient buildings and infrastructure.The Ecotect tools can measure how fundamental criteria, such as solar, thermal, shading, lighting, and airflow, will affect building performance in the conceptual and detailed phases of design. Their capability to forecast building performance over time better equips architects and engineers to deliver more energy efficient and sustainable building designs.ECOTECT is a complete building design and environmental analysis tool that covers the full range of simulation and analysis functions required to truly understand how a building design will operate and perform. It finally allows designers to work easily in 3D and apply all the tools necessary for an energy efficient and sustainable future. ECOTECT: Features in detailECOTECT offers a vast range of modelling, visualisation and analysis features. The following links provide detailed information about the different capabilities of the program and how they are implemented and applied.Autodesk Ecotect can measure how fundamental criteria, such as solar, thermal, shading, lighting, and airflow, will affect building performance in the conceptual and detailed phases of design. This capability to forecast building performance over time better equips architects and engineers to deliver more energy efficient and sustainable building designs.ECOTECT: Lighting DesignECOTECT uses the BRE Daylight Factor method for daylighting calculation and the Point-to-Point method for electric lighting. For more detailed analysis you can export your model directly to tools such as DAYSIM and RADIANCE.Lighting Analysis ECOTECT now includes a Lighting Wizard to guide you through the process of calculating light and daylight levels in your building. You can calculate daylight factors and illuminance levels at any points in your model or, as shown above, over the analysis grid. Geometric and material information in ECOTECT can be exported directly to RADIANCE for a physically accurate lighting simulation. Using the Radiance Image Viewer that is part of ECOTECT, you can easily generate contoured or false-colour lux and DF images. Once you have calculated daylight factors in your model, you can use ECOTECT's advanced daylighting features to determine potential savings due to daylight-linked lighting controls or export directly to DAYSIM for a detailed analysis of daylight autonomy. ECOTECT allows you to edit or import the IES profiles of different lights and luminaires, displaying them directly within the context of your model as you design your lighting system. These profiles are based on user-definable design illuminance levels set for the zone to which the lights belong, showing illuminance contours as a volumetric boundary at which the required zone illuminance is exactly met by each light. ECOTECT: Ventilation & Air FlowECOTECT allows you to generate both the geometry and analysis grids for export directly to computational fluid dynamics (CFD) tools such as NIST-FDS, Fluent and WinAir4. After the calculations in these tools are complete, it is then possible to import results back into ECOTECT for display within the context of the original model. If you set up a 3D analysis grid within your model, ECOTECT can export this information directly to a range of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) tools, the results of which can then be imported. Once you have the results imported back into ECOTECT, you can choose many different visualisation and persentation options. This can even be viewed as volumetrically as you move about in 3D. The same processes can be used to look at air flow both through and around buildings or complex urban environments. Prevailing Winds Using data in the hourly weather file, ECOTECT can overlay wind speed and direction directly on top of the current model, making it especially relevant to natural ventilation and wind shelter strategies. This plot can also show temperature, humidity and rainfall, over any date and time range. Plots of prevailing winds from weather data, showing annual wind frequency and speed (left) and summer wind temperatures (right). VentilationThe thermal analysis routines in ECOTECT are based on the CIBSE Admittance Method which does not require detailed air-flow and ventilation information. However, as you can see from the Thermal Gallery page, ECOTECT can be used as a pre and post processor for external computational fluid dynamics tools that fully consider air flows.You may also be interested in the gallery pages, for more examples of ECOTECT in action.

• Shadows & Reflections
• Shading Design
• Solar Analysis
• Lighting Design
• Right-to-Light
• Acoustic Analysis
• Thermal Analysis
• Ventilation & Air Flow
• Building Regulations
• Resource Management
• Visualisation & Import / Export
• Gallery
• Screenshots

Upgrades For Existing License HoldersVersion 5.60 uses a very different license system, however you should be able to upgrade quite easily. If you go to http://ecotect.com/support , near the top should be a link with a title relating to finding your lost activation details. The resulting page will show you how to obtain your new activation code and download the very latest version that you can activate.

The Autodesk Green Building Studio analysis tools, now available at http://www.autodesk.com/greenbuildingstudio, provide improved design insight through whole building energy, water and carbon-emission analysis, helping architects and designers to maximize building economic and environmental performance. The tools are compatible with Autodesk design software as well as software from other industry providers through the Green Building XML (gbXML) schema and can now be directly accessed from within the Revit platform for BIM with a new plug-in now available for download. Green Building Studio Inc. launched the Green Building Studio web service in 2004.The Autodesk® Green Building Studio® web-based energy analysis service can help architects and designers perform whole building analysis, optimize energy efficiency, and work toward carbon neutrality earlier in the design process. With faster, more accurate energy analysis of building design proposals, architects and designers can work with sustainably in mind earlier in the process, plan proactively, and build better. With the Autodesk® Green Building Studio® web-based energy analysis service, architects and designers can evaluate building components for impact on energy consumption as well as improve economic and environmental performance early in the design process. Compatible with Revit MEP The Autodesk Green Building Studio service is an analysis tool that interoperates with Revit® MEP and other compatible energy-analysis software and facilitates team collaboration and information sharing at all stages of design. Evaluate Energy Profiles of Building Designs Green Building Studio tools enable architects and designers to evaluate the energy profiles and carbon footprints of various building designs. Files are shared between engineering software programs and among engineers and architects early in the design cycle, making sustainable design more efficient and cost effective. With Autodesk Green Building Studio tools, you can

• Capture early sustainable design analysis to support the process of reducing or eliminating negative environmental impacts.
• Communicate among the extended building design team using Autodesk design applications and other compatible energy and green analysis software.
• Gain a competitive advantage with increased client satisfaction and improved environmental performance.

Autodesk Green Build Studios Q&A (pdf - 52Kb) Autodesk’s acquisition of Green Building Studio’s assets was completed on May 1, 2008. They've completed the migration of the web service to Autodesk’s hardware. New users and existing Green Building Studio customers can now access the web service in the following manner.

• Current ‘pay-as-you-go’ customers can take advantage of a limited free trial period scheduled to conclude on or about June 30, 2008. Log into your existing account, accept the new Terms of Use agreement, and start realizing carbon neutral design with free analysis on up to two building projects per account.
• New customers can take advantage of a free 30-day trial period. Create a new user account, accept the Terms of Use agreement, and start realizing carbon neutral design with free analysis on up to two building projects per account.
• Returning annual subscription corporate customers can continue to use the Autodesk Green Building Studio web service as usual for the remaining term of your original subscription purchase. Just login to your existing account and accept the new Terms of Use agreement.
• To purchase single user annual subscriptions ($745) and 10-user corporate annual subscriptions ($4,995), login to the Autodesk Green Building Studio web service, accept the new Terms of Use agreement, and select the Upgrade link on the Project List page. Please note, PayPal TM payment services are no longer available. A note to Graphisoft users, the ArchiCAD add-on is temporarily unavailable while we are making updates to our new servers. We do expect availability soon and apologize for the inconvenience.

Users of Autodesk’s Revit®-based software applications who register for the Autodesk Green Building Studio service can now access the service directly with a plug-in available from our Downloads page after login. If you have questions about a new or existing account, please contact their technical support staff directly via email. Technical support can be reached at support@greenbuildingstudio.com.

Integrated Environmental Solutions (IES) launched VE-Ware sustainable design software that provides limited access to the company's Virtual Environment Apache thermal analysis software for free.VE-Ware reportedly gives instant feedback on a building's energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions based on real geometry and using international data on climatic conditions and the typical characteristics of different building, room, and system types. Because it facilitates iterative design, allowing the comparison of different design, layout, and system options, VE-Ware is appropriate for use at early stages of design.In the United States, as a direct response to the Architecture 2030 Challenge, VE-Ware will assess how the building is performing against this benchmark, for example, whether it meets the current Architecture 2030 50% energy reduction targets.The data entry and outputs are managed for the user so that anyone can use VE-Ware to help reduce the energy consumption and carbon emissions of a building, the company states. For example, an architect, facilities manager, or building owner can undertake detailed energy and carbon assessments that can make a real difference to the green credentials of the building.Currently only models exported directly from Autodesk Revit can be accepted by VE-Ware. However, over the coming months the company plans to expand the software's capabilities to include other options for inputting the geometry data. The goal is to make VE-Ware available globally to anyone who wishes to use it, regardless of vendor or system.The free VE-Ware will be released in June 2008. However, interested parties can register now at the IES Web site.

Read the Article at Contract MagazineImagine a highly sophisticated building integrated modeling (BIM) software capable of calculating real-time energy and water use levels, for example, and USGBC LEED points based upon evolving design decisions, as they're made. This "dashboard concept" is the centerpiece of a one-year-old joint partnership between the USGBC and Autodesk, which was presented as a vision of the future at Greenbuild in 2007. Essentially, Autodesk's Phil Bernstein, FAIA, LEED AP, vice president of AEC industry strategy and relations, explains the concept as a "platform that allows you to predict the behavior of your building before you construct it, via a convergence of modeling, analysis, and sustainable validation into an improved design process."See Video demonstration this future software visionWith the USGBC planning to revamp LEED into a more intelligent system, more capable of assessing the environmental impact of the built environment, BIM stands to better enable this goal. "From a strategy perspective, the USGBC recognizes that part of the green building movement is going to have to be technology-driven," acknowledges Max Zahniser, LEED AP, NCARB, formerly LEED's program manager for process and integration, and currently principal of Praxis-Building Solutions, Philadelphia.Zahniser, who has remained the USGBC's representative in the Autodesk partnership despite becoming an independent consultant, further explains. "There is just a small set of green building gurus capable of assessing their design decisions as they are made. We wanted to make it possible for more than just the gurus to be able to design successful green buildings." Now that the "conceptual stake has been placed in the ground," the USGBC and Autodesk are rolling up their sleeves to develop this software with the hope of creating a more integrated design process via a holistic approach to building systems.For example, if the design team knows how sophisticated its daylighting system is, thanks to data generated by the next-generation software, the decision can more accurately be made to utilize fewer fixtures. Similarly, the team can track the trade-off between LEED daylighting and energy credits by experimenting with different shading devices and glazing systems on the building model. Or by tracking the efficiency of the building envelope, the HVAC system can then be accurately downsized and the baseboard heating system eliminated. "Such a building tool will allow the user to quickly understand the complete interdependence between different systems and the environment," claims Bernstein.When Autodesk originally got involved with the USGBC through the decision to help sponsor Greenbuild a couple years back, the two organizations discovered that they possessed a similar vision of buildings and the environment. "Seeing the world in really similar ways, with lots of synergies, we all hit it off really well," Bernstein reflects.Thus, the decision was made to enter into a strategic partnership, officially announced at Greenbuild 2006. In addition to the technology aspect of the relationship—to which USGBC brings functionality required by the end-user to the table, while Autodesk provides the technical expertise—are two additional components: education and consulting. So far, the two groups have teamed up to create a sustainable design curriculum for schools of architecture, and Autodesk has been called upon as a consultant to offer technical advise to USGBC on a couple of other projects. Although USGBC and Autodesk's different teams have been predominately working together on an informal level, Bernstein describes the relationship as potent, having achieved quite a bit in just one year of collaboration.

Architect and designer William McDonough asks what our buildings and products would look like if designers took into account "All children, all species, for all time." A tireless proponent of absolute sustainability (with a deadpan sense of humor), he explains his philosophy of "cradle to cradle" design, which bridge the needs of ecology and economics. He also shares some of his most inspiring work, including the world's largest green roof (at the Ford plant in Dearborn, Michigan), and the entire sustainable cities he's designing in China.Click Here to Watch Video

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) currently has over nine LEED rating systems covering commercial and residential buildings, interiors, and exteriors, all the way up to entire neighborhoods, and several more systems are on the way. Even as LEED continues to proliferate, however, a movement continues among USGBC leadership to make it more unified, scientifically rigorous, and regionally appropriate. First discussed at the Greenbuild Conference in 2006, USGBC announced at Greenbuild 2007 that it would continue to move LEED toward a “bookshelf” of credits while incorporating both structural and technical changes. At the same time, weighting of environmental priorities, life-cycle assessment (LCA), and regional credits all promise to affect LEED and its point structure. Whereas the original rating system applied only to new construction and was drafted with commercial office towers in mind, LEED has grown so much in popularity and use that new rating systems have been specifically created for different kinds of buildings. There are now LEED standards for existing buildings (focusing on energy-efficient maintenance and nontoxic operations); core and shell (exterior walls and windows, electrical and plumbing systems); commercial interiors (doors and walls, lighting and plumbing fixtures); homes (only for new construction in its pilot phase) and neighborhood developments (for example, a redevelopment zone).Like any young industry, LEED is evolving rapidly. Lessons learned from pilot projects are used to improve the next version of the standard. Work is now under way on the 3.0 version, which will attempt to assess the environmental impact of a product or material over its complete lifecycle. It’s a difficult and important task, and whatever emerges is guaranteed to generate controversy. But once again, by providing a framework, language, and measurement system for lifecycle analysis, LEED will fuel conversations and spur market growth.

Building information modeling facilitates complex processes and analyses that were previously too laborious or expensive to perform. This white paper details how Autodesk's purpose-built BIM solution supports key aspects of sustainable design and "green" certification.Download Whitepaper from Autodesk about Sustainable Design