A computational framework for integration of performance information during the building lifecycle

Optimal indoor environments in terms of thermal comfort and indoor air quality are essential to maintain healthy and productive spaces. To address the high occupant comfort and energy efficiency requirements, advanced HVAC systems that have narrow performance boundaries are used. It is crucial to achieve the satisfactory operational level for systems and buildings by the adoption of performance based verification strategies. Performance-based approach requires the continuous verification of the actual performance against objectives during the building lifecycle. Building commissioning, building energy management systems (BEMS) and operations and main-tenance are effective tools to verify optimum building performance and have the potential to embed performance as-sessment into the building lifecycle. However, transfer of performance information from one method or building phase to another is difficult. A considerable amount of valuable information is lost due to the lack of an integrated framework that bridges different islands of information. This becomes most problematic during the operational phase, where de-sign data and performance trends are the main basis for decision making for facilities management staff. To achieve a persistent performance evaluation across phases and stakeholders, a flexible and seamless communication infrastruc-ture across disciplines and processes is necessary. The software architecture for a continuous performance verification and communication environment for indoor cli-mate and ventilation systems is introduced. The purpose of the model is to provide a framework that integrates commis-sioning, BEMS monitoring and inspection/maintenance activities, to avoid erosion of domain information during hand-overs and over time. The model retains continual information of building and makes this information available during building operations and [re]commissioning. A formal relationship structure is proposed between performance indices to support traceability of design and operations decisions. The paper will be concluded with reflections into the future work, which includes implementation and proposed strategies for validation of the model by test cases.