Sustainable Building Technical Manual - Etn-presco.net

PART IVBuilding DesignIntroductionBuilding design is moving into an extraordinary phase of evolution in this decade.Strategies that have been considered “cutting-edge” in the recent past—such as passivesolar design, environmentally sensitive design, and design that emphasizes indoor environmentalquality—are now becoming prominent and economically feasible. In Part IV,these strategies are applied to the design process to offer a new perspective on buildings—onethat exceeds conventional practice in a variety of ways.In Section A, the chapters deal with passive solar design through a discussion of daylighting,building envelope, and renewable energy—the basic strategies of green design that adapt abuilding to its site and climate. Section B focuses on building systems—heating, ventilating,and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems; lighting; and electrical technologies that support andmust be integrated with the passive design in an efficient and appropriate manner. Otherchapters in Section B address indoor environmental quality, including air quality andacoustics, and building commissioning. Section C provides a decision process and criteriafor selecting environmentally sound materials for a construction project, and the meansto incorporate environmental components into construction specifications.An integrated approach is required for successful application of these strategies. Thewhole picture is one of a building as a complete system, with the building siting, form,envelope, systems, and contents simultaneously interacting together and fitting their settingin nature. The resulting building will perform as a resource-efficient and cost-effectivesystem designed to enhance occupants’ productivity and health. A whole-teamapproach, commencing early in the design process, is necessary to achieve this.The greening of public and commercial buildings is a large agenda, perhaps too large forany individual or organization to undertake in one step. It is a real challenge to includeor optimize all of these design strategies in one project, but every renovation or newbuilding project can emphasize at least some of these strategies and achieve higherthan-normallevels of efficiencies and performance. The process is evolutionary andprogresses incrementally.