Interpreting Building Simulation modelling data for Building Designers, with spe- cific reference to the cooling demand

The paper describes a method to show how Building Simulation data can be interpreted to provide informa-tion that is of use to non-Building Simulation experts involved in the design of low energy Buildings. The method uses a heat balance simulation tool, Energy Plus, and focuses on analysing the inside surface heat balance breakdowns instead of only using the predicted overall cooling demand as would be usual. It relates the inside surface heat balance components to design parameters and the design scope for action, and presents results for the building’s response to the weath-er separately from the building’s response to the usage. The authors believe this separation is important to allow the designer to understand better the building response. This then gives them information on which design op-tions are potentially open to them to increase or reduce this response as desired within the boundaries of the overall design intentions. 1