Sustainable Retrofitting of Commercial Buildings

Despite recent improvements in energy efficiency being made in new build, it is important that the existing commercial building sector also take action to meet emission reduction targets. The objectives and challenges of such action will reduce the risk of the sector becoming obsolete due to high energy use and poor environmental performance.

This book presents a theory-based, practice-support methodology to deal with sustainable retrofitting opportunities for existing commercial buildings in warm climates using bioclimatic design as the basis. The book has four main parts, focusing on eco-design and renovation, bioclimatic retrofitting, technological and behavioural change and case studies of retrofitting exemplars. In the first part, the context of climate change effects on design and renovation at the city scale is discussed. The second part looks at bioclimatic retrofitting as a 'design guide' for existing buildings, highlighting the significance of architectural design and engineering systems for energy performance. The technological and behavioural contexts of the existing building sector – policies, modelling, monitoring and trend analysis in respect to energy and environmental performance – are covered in part three. The final part gives some case studies showing the effectiveness of strategies suggested for effective environmental performance. This book is a must-have guide for all involved in the design and engineering of retrofitting projects in warm climates.

Richard Hyde is Professor of Architectural Science at the University of Sydney, Australia. He is a registered architect engaged in the field of sustainable architectural design and research for buildings. He is currently Associate Dean Research, Editor-in-Chief of Architectural Science Review and Coordinator of the Sustainable Design Program, Faculty of Architecture Design and Planning, the University of Sydney.

Nathan Groenhout is a consultant providing ecologically sustainable design, thermal and energy modelling, and research and development in building innovation. He is currently Adjunct Associate Professor in the Faculty of Architecture Design and Planning at the University of Sydney, Australia. In January 2002, he was a Visiting Research Scholar at the Institute of Fluid Science, Tohoku University, Japan whilst completing his PhD in numerical and experimental investigations of advanced solar water heaters.

Francis Barram is an author and energy analyst with extensive experience in the design of sustainable building services and industrial processes. He is a member of the Australian Standards Energy Audit Standard Committee and founder and Managing Director of Ensight, an award winning national consultancy.

Ken Yeang is an architect, planner and ecologist. He is the Chairman and Design Director of Llewelyn Davies Yeang (UK) and principal of T. R. Hamzah & Yeang (Malaysia). He is the Distinguished Plym Professor at the University of Illinois, USA, and has received international awards for his architecture and masterplans.