Title Details

PIETER DE WILDE is Professor of Building Performance Analysis at Plymouth University, UK. His research interests are the design, construction and operation of buildings that perform as expected by all stakeholders. Educated at TU Delft in the Netherlands, he has over 20 years of experience with research projects that involve both building performance simulation and building monitoring. He serves on the Board of the International Building Performance Simulation Association (IBPSA) and the European Group for Intelligent Computing in Engineering (EG-ICE). Professor de Wilde is Fellow of IBPSA and CIBSE, and member of ASHRAE.

Endorsement by IBPSA ix

Foreword xi

Preface xiii

Acknowledgements xv

Endorsements xvii

1 Introduction 1

1.1 Building Performance: Framing, Key Terms and Definition 7

1.2 Performance in the Building Domain 14

1.2.1 Development of the Notion of Building Performance 15

1.2.2 History of Building Codes, Regulations and Rating Schemes 23

1.2.3 Selected Recent Developments in Building Performance 28

1.3 Outline of the Book 34

1.4 Reflections on Building Performance Analysis 37

1.5 Summary 38

1.6 Key References 41

Part I Foundation 43

2 Building Performance in Context 45

2.1 Building Life Cycle 47

2.2 Stakeholders 50

2.3 Building Systems 54

2.4 Building Performance Challenges 58

2.5 Building Performance Context in Current Practice 64

2.6 Reflections on the Complexity of the Context 67

2.7 Summary 68

2.8 Key References 70

3 Needs, Functions and Requirements 73

3.1 Requirement Specification 75

3.2 Requirement Types 83

3.3 Functional Requirements 86

3.4 Building Functions 90

3.5 Stakeholder World Views 96

3.6 Building Performance Requirements 99

3.7 Building Needs, Functions and Requirements in Current Practice 105

3.8 Reflections on Building Performance Requirements 109

3.9 Summary 111

3.10 Key References 114

Part II Assessment 117

4 Fundamentals of Building Performance 119

4.1 Performance: The Interface between Requirements and Systems 123

4.2 Quantifying Performance 128

4.3 Experimentation and Measurement 134

4.4 Building Performance Metrics, Indicators and Measures 140

4.4.1 Performance Metrics 141

4.4.2 Performance Indicators 144

4.4.3 Performance Measures 154

4.5 Handling and Combining Building Performance 157

4.6 Signs of Performance Issues 159

4.7 Building Performance in Current Practice 161

4.8 Reflections on Working with Building Performance 164

4.9 Summary 165

4.10 Key References 168

5 Performance Criteria 171

5.1 Goals, Targets and Ambitions 174

5.2 Benchmarks and Baselines 182

5.3 Constraints, Thresholds and Limits 189

5.4 Performance Categories and Bands 194

5.5 Criteria in Current Practice 196

5.6 Reflections on Performance Criteria 198

5.7 Summary 199

5.8 Key References 202

6 Performance Quantification 205

6.1 Physical Measurement 208

6.1.1 Selected Physical Measurements and Tests 209

6.1.2 Standards for Physical Measurement 228

6.2 Building Performance Simulation 234

6.2.1 Selected Building Simulation Tool Categories 239

6.2.2 Validation, Verification and Calibration 259

6.3 Expert Judgment 262

6.4 Stakeholder Evaluation 267

6.5 Measurement of Construction Process Performance 271

6.6 Building Performance Quantification in Current Practice 273

6.7 Reflections on Quantification Methods 275

6.8 Summary 276

6.9 Key References 279

7 Working with Building Performance 283

7.1 Examples: Selected Building Performance Analysis Cases 285

7.2 Criterion Development 293

7.3 Tool and Instrument Configuration 310

7.4 Iterative Analysis 313

7.5 Building Performance Analysis in Current Practice 314

7.6 Reflections on Working with Building Performance 318

7.7 Summary 319

7.8 Key References 321

Part III Impact 323

8 Design and Construction for Performance 325

8.1 Performance‐ Based Design 328

8.2 Performance‐ Based Design Decisions 343

8.2.1 Normative Decision Methods 350

8.2.2 Naturalistic Decision Making 353

8.2.3 Decision‐Making Challenges 355

8.3 Tools for Performance‐Based Design 356

8.4 Performance Visualization and Communication 369

8.5 Construction for Performance 374

8.6 Design and Construction for Performance Challenges 377

8.7 Reflections on Designing for Performance 379

8.8 Summary 381

8.9 Key References 383

9 Building Operation, Control and Management 387

9.1 Building Performance Management and Control 390

9.1.1 Building Automation Systems 393

9.1.2 Model‐Based Predictive Control 397

9.2 Performance Monitoring 398

9.2.1 Specialized Monitoring Techniques 405

9.2.2 International Performance Measurement and Verification Protocol 407

9.3 Fault Detection and Diagnostics 408

9.4 Performance Service Companies and Contracts 413

9.5 Building Operation, Control and Management Challenges 417

9.6 Reflections on Building Automation and Monitoring 419

9.7 Summary 420

9.8 Key References 422

10 High Performance Buildings 425

10.1 Existing Definitions for High Performance Buildings 427

10.2 Emerging Technologies 431

10.3 Smart and Intelligent Buildings 435

10.4 High Performance Building Challenges 437

10.5 Reflection: A Novel Definition for High Performance Buildings 440

10.6 Summary 442

10.7 Key References 444

Epilogue 447

11 Emergent Theory of Building Performance Analysis 449

11.1 Observations, Explanations, Principles and Hypotheses 449

11.2 Suggested Guidelines for Building Performance Analysis 460

11.2.1 Building Performance Analysis During Design 460

11.2.2 Building Performance Analysis During Operation 462

11.2.3 Building Performance Analysis in Research 463

11.3 Future Challenges 463

11.4 Closure 465

Appendix A: Overview of Building Performance Aspects 467

Appendix B: Criterion Development Template 471

Appendix C: Tool/Instrument Configuration Checklist 473

Appendix D: Measurement Instruments 477

Glossary 481

Building Performance Abbreviations 487

Generic Abbreviations 489

List of Figures and Tables 493

Symbols and Units 497

About the Author 501

References: Longlist and Secondary Sources 503

Index 589

The International Building Performance Simulation Association (IBPSA) was founded to advance and promote the science of building performance simulation in order to improve the design, construction, operation and maintenance of new and existing buildings worldwide. IBPSA recognises the complexity of building performance and the many factors that influence this. This book addresses these issues in detail, unpacking the meaning of building performance analysis by considering its history and current practices. In doing so, it leads the reader to an appreciation of the fundamental importance of building performance analysis and the role it plays at all stages of the life cycle of a building, leading to an emergent theory of building performance analysis in Chapter 11.

Along this journey, the book mobilises an extensive quantity of relevant literature on this broad subject, making it an invaluable resource for students at all levels. Each chapter concludes with a list of activities that not only serves as a summary of the material covered but also provides an excellent basis from which to develop student projects and assessments.

The book provides a broad range of insights, food for thought and suggestions for how to approach your own building performance analysis. It is hoped that the book will go some way to elucidating the topic, equipping graduates with the knowledge and awareness required to specify, design, procure and operate high performance buildings that deliver high quality indoor environments and low energy consumption.

IBPSA is grateful to Professor De Wilde for the many hours he has devoted to bringing this book to fruition and commends it to anyone pursing a detailed knowledge of building performance analysis and its allied disciplines.

Professor Malcolm Cook, Loughborough University, UK
Chair of the IBPSA Publication Committee

Many disciplines are concerned with aspects of building performance and its analysis. Surprisingly, little work exists that presents a comprehensive and systematic overview of this diverse and growing field. This timely book by Pieter de Wilde, a leading researcher and practitioner of building performance analysis, thus fills a significant gap. The book guides readers through a wide range of topics from theoretical foundations to practical applications. Key concepts, such as performance attributes, performance targets or performance banding, are introduced, as are the methods to measure and evaluate building performance. Topics of both scientific and practical relevance, including decision making under uncertainty or data collection and analysis for improved building operation and control, are reviewed and discussed. Readers will appreciate the comprehensive coverage of relevant research and standards literature, which makes the book particularly valuable as a reference. In summary, this book is highly recommended reading for both novices and experts who are interested in or want to learn more about building performance analysis.

Georg Suter, Vienna University of Technology, Austria

It sometimes is a challenge to write a book to describe the things we always talk about. Dr. de Wilde deals with the important topic of ‘building performance’. This sounds easy, but actually the subject is very complex. Yet we must define the meaning of building performance before designing and constructing green buildings, low‐carbon buildings or high performance buildings. After a thorough review of state‐of‐art research on building performance, this book presents an ‘emergent theory’ of building performance analysis. This book will play an important role in a deeper exploration of this fundamental topic.

Wei Tian, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, China

Over the last two decades, I have been involved in simulation studies of more than 20 existing buildings in the United States and South Korea, analysing the performance of double skins, HVAC systems (such as the example briefly introduced in Chapter 6 of this book), occupant behaviour, machine learning models for building systems and many others. However, it has never been easy to unambiguously quantify building performance of these cases. For example, how can we ‘objectively’ quantify the energy/ daylighting/lighting/thermal comfort performance of a double skin system under different orientations and changing indoor and outdoor conditions? The performance of this double skin is dependent on design variables (height, width, depth, glazing type, blind type), controls (angle of blind slats, opening ratio of ventilation dampers usually located at the top and bottom of the double skin), occupant behaviour (lights on/off, windows open/closed), HVAC mode (cooling/heating) and so on. As this example shows, objective performance quantification of a double skin is not an easy task. Moreover, so far there is no established theory or set of principles to help us direct the analysis of building performance at different building and system scales. The general way we presently describe building performance is at best a ‘relative’ comparison to a baseline case. This book by Professor de Wilde attempts to fill this void and presents an emergent theory of building performance analysis. I have observed for several years how Professor de Wilde has worked hard to complete this invaluable book. I firmly believe that it will contribute as a foundation stone to the area of building performance studies and will support efforts in this field for many years to come.

Cheol Soo Park, Sungkyunkwan University, South Korea

At last, a book that answers the question ‘what is building performance?’ not by theory alone, but through analytics and impacts on building practice. Pieter de Wilde has crafted a comprehensive compilation of what building performance truly means – from its place in the building life cycle and its relationship to stakeholders – through systems, technologies and the unpredictable occupants who often have the most influence on how buildings perform. The book goes beyond the merely theoretical by demonstrating the analytics, tools and instruments needed to evaluate building performance in practice. The case studies are relevant and specific to the system or technology but also to the appropriate part of the building life cycle. By the end, Pieter de Wilde ties it all together through life cycle phase specific theories for evaluating building performance – design, operation and research. Well written, insightful and a pleasure to read.

Dru Crawley, Bentley Systems, USA

This is a long awaited primer for those studying performance, simulation and analysis of buildings. As a subject, building performance analysis borrows from a wide variety of viewpoints and disciplines. This book takes on the difficult task of consolidating these together and goes a step further in articulating the particular nuances of building performance. It is the first book on building performance that goes beyond current trends in research and instead reflects on its foundations, remit and reach. The book is sure to become an essential read for graduate students wanting to grasp the breadth of the subject and its roots. The clearly identified reading list and scenario exercises (activities) at the end of each chapter are fantastic; they help the reader go beyond the text and are particularly valuable for generating discussion sessions for graduate courses.

Ruchi Choudhary, University of Cambridge, UK