Industry whitepaper reveals the untapped potential of dormant digital assets
Reinstating existing 3D design, energy compliance or BIM models created during a building’s development is instrumental in closing the gap between a building’s predicted and actual operational energy performance, according to experts from across the built environment sector.
A landmark collaborative whitepaper published by Glasgow-based climate technology firm, IES, underlines that digital models created for compliance purposes during building design or refurbishment are rarely used to their full potential throughout the rest of a building’s lifecycle. This is despite the fact that 90% of AEC professionals see the value of using energy models in operation and cite closing the performance gap as the biggest driver for doing so.
The whitepaper, which brings together influential voices from organisations including the UK Green Building Council (UKGBC), HLM Architects, the University of Glasgow, SWECO, and Perth & Kinross Council, argues that putting an existing compliance energy model through further modelling stages and combining it with actual data from the building itself to create a Performance Digital Twin, can help bridge the energy performance gap. This process has been coined as the Sleeping Digital Twin theory by IES.
Beyond closing the performance gap and accelerating progress towards net zero, the concept of ‘awakening’ an existing model also brings productivity benefits to AEC practitioners. It could significantly reduce the initial modelling time involved in post-occupancy studies as well as retrofit and rebuild projects, improving project turnaround times and maximising the capacity of modelling teams.
However, the whitepaper explores several hurdles that the industry must overcome to make use of energy models in operation. For example, the accompanying survey of 167 AEC consultants revealed funding, lack of understanding from clients, and accessibility of models as the top three barriers to utilising existing assets.
Commenting on the findings of the whitepaper, Don McLean, CEO of IES said: “In this digitally enabled age, the industry must move beyond archaic practices and make the most of the insights already at its fingertips. We must make the shift from a ‘design for compliance’ culture, in which buildings are designed to reach minimum performance standards, to a ‘design to performance’ approach which garners real results.
“If we are to address the performance gap and make greater progress towards net zero targets, accurately predicting and measuring the performance of buildings throughout their lifecycle is a must. Without doing so, it’s impossible to know how efficient they are and the industry risks missing opportunities to make improvements that cut emissions – and costs.
“All partners involved in the lifecycle of a building must design with other stages of the process in mind, not just their constituent part, to reduce disparities between predicted and actual performance.
“Increasing uptake of post-occupancy evaluations will also be key to closing the performance gap and act as a stepping stone to highlight the benefits of awakening existing models. Despite this, only 30% of AEC consultants say that they are being asked to deliver these. As such, built environment professionals have a role to play in educating clients on the importance of in-use evaluation and the role that models can play in optimising a building in operation. Not only will this help to develop client understanding and drive demand, but it will also enable those in the AEC sector to expand the services that they provide at the operational stage of a building.
“Collaboration is key here, and we’re calling for the industry to open greater dialogue and make better use of our existing digital assets to accelerate the decarbonisation of the built environment.”
The full whitepaper, which includes viewpoints from the UKGBC, CIBSE, Introba, SWECO, Gafcon Digital, HOK, HLM Architect, Perth & Kinross Council, The University of Birmingham, and the University of Glasgow, is available to read here.
