Improved facades for office buildings, case study: Wates House

In the context of climate change and the need to decarbonise the building sector, the present thesis sets off to investigate the potential of cutting down on the carbon footprint of buildings, particularly office and commercial, by applying improved facade systems. Moreover, facade options are compared, in order to examine the effect they have on building performance and appearance. Various facade options were researched in literature, and the findings were applied and tested in re-cladding a case study building. The re-cladding options can be divided in three groups according to the strategies applied improved thermal conductivity of the envelop, use of sola shading devices and responsive solar transmittance of glazing, by applying electrochromic technology. They were tested through building simulation software TAS. The key issues of the building performance evaluated are the heating loads and the potential of overheating- which is connected with the use of air-conditioning. Analysis of BIPVs and cost analysis cover additional issues related with the facade options. After the research and evaluation of the facade options, the preferable option for re-cladding the case study building was found the use of electrochromic glazing. This conclusion covers not only the environmental performance but also the value of this option on the image of the building. The study concluded that improved facades can significantly reduce- about 90%- carbon footprint of the aging office building stock. It is also indicated the energy demand is not the only criterion when evaluating a facade performance, since a much wider range of issues are related, such as cost, payback period, health and comfort of the occupants and architectural appeal of the building