Application of BIM-to-BEM procedure and Multicriteria decision making tool on Gdynia demonstration site
May 04, 2021
BIM-SPEED tests its solutions in 13 real demonstration cases, which cover Europe's climatic geo-clusters and varying levels of BIM experience in different countries. Today we highlight the demonstration site in Gdynia, Poland, a two-family building. The building was constructed in 1961 and requires renovation. The insulation of the building envelope needs to be upgraded. Additionally, the Heat, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning systems must be replaced. Within the BIM-SPEED project, tools and methods for Renovation design, Building Energy Model (BEM), and performance simulation phases will be tested.
The first steps at the demonstration site include updating the as-built Building Information Model (BIM) and developing the BEM to perform an energy analysis of the building. The implementation of the BIM-SPEED methodology and tools provides several improvements, significantly reducing BEM development time. For instance, the BIM-to-BEM procedure prepares high-quality input data for BEM creation, because BIM files can be easily imported to Open BIM Analytical Model. With only small adjustments, users can generate an analytical model with defined spaces and adjacency between partitions. Another improvement is the collection of all physical and thermal properties required for BEM definition in one excel spreadsheet, making the following steps faster and more reliable. Additionally, defining partition physical properties is slightly easier and faster in Open BIM Construction Systems in comparison to traditionally used tools. Altogether, the BIM-SPEED procedure makes BEM development faster and less error-prone. On the Gdynia demonstration site, this newly developed BIM-to-BEM approach contributed to a 40%-time reduction in comparison to current practice.
Another tool tested on the Gdynia demonstration building is the Multicriteria decision-making tool. This BIM-SPEED decision-making methodology provides stakeholders from the building renovation industry with a framework:
- To engage different stakeholders and conduct the decision-making process following a structured procedure
- To implement a sustainable assessment approach considering environmental, social, and economic aspects
- To capture the preferences of different stakeholders' groups and consider their roles in the decision-making process
- To identify which renovation alternatives are more suitable, according to the objectives and preferences of the different stakeholders, in a transparent way
- To gather and present the results from different analysis such as energy simulations, cost analysis, and comfort studies performed during the assessment of design alternatives
This decision-making tool can support stakeholders to identify typical objectives, which is one of the most demanding tasks at the beginning of the process. Moreover, as the decision-making tool covers social, economic, and environmental elements, it encourages stakeholders to apply a sustainable approach. The methodology proposes a clear structure for the decision-making process, facilitating the engagement of different stakeholders. In turn, the methodology provides clear identification in which stage of the process the stakeholders are involved, as well as how their preferences and contributions are considered during the process. Finally, stakeholders can analyze several alternatives to narrow down to the most suitable options. A detailed analysis can help determine potential adjustments and combinations for the final implemented renovation solutions.
Regarding the Gdynia demonstration site, multiple renovation alternatives are considered, such as the insulation of the external walls and roof, the use of a solar system, and the replacement of items, including windows, lighting, pipes and heating source. The selection criteria to choose the most optimum renovation scenario are: operational primary energy, total energy demand, energy savings, global warming potential, visual comfort, Indoor air quality, thermal comfort, aesthetics, renovation time, durability, Investment cost, LCC Cost, maintenance cost and operational energy cost. Based on the decision-making methodology, the best possible renovation scenario, which fits and matches the requirements of the investor, designer, and building itself, is selected.
