A Plus Energy Building is unlike any other building. It is a building that produces more final energy than it uses via locally available renewable sources over a time span of one year, while also providing comfortable and healthy indoor environments. It also has several benefits: it is good for the environment, for the residents, and it has a great value for money.
Plus Energy Buildings will be the standard of the future. How should building owners, designers, and architects approach the construction and design of Plus Energy Buildings?
A social based approach to designing Plus Energy Buildings
Comfort isn’t just about temperature: it’s closely tied to meeting people’s needs. Even when people know how to use the advanced technologies in their homes, they often override these systems if they don’t feel comfortable. And this happens regardless of culture and location. Simply giving people rewards, penalties, or information to encourage energy-saving behaviour doesn’t work as expected. People's decisions are often influenced by their unmet needs, both consciously and unconsciously.
This social based approach involves four steps:
- Understand conflicting behaviours: identify daily actions in the home that reduce the building’s energy efficiency.
- Identify needs: understand the underlying needs driving these behaviours.
- Recognize strategies: observe how residents currently meet these needs, even if it means overriding the technology.
- Incorporate trade-offs in design: adjust building or technology designs to meet these needs in a way that balances energy efficiency and usability. Whenever possible, involve residents in the design process.
Key design principles for PEBs
Our researchers have gathered and written tips on how to successfully design and build a PEB across all phases.
7 key design principles will guide you in creating Plus Energy Buildings and comfortable, healthy, and environmentally responsible spaces for people to live well in.
These principles should guide the design of Plus Energy Buildings across all phases of the building’s life.
Do you want to know practical tips for each of these phases, discover available technologies and how to best apply them?
