nZEB Office Retrofit
Arising from the Recast European Performance of Buildings Directive 2010/30/EU, from January 1st 2021 every new building in Ireland will have to be designed to Near Zero Energy Building standards (nZEB) – meaning buildings with an ultra low energy demand for heating, cooling, ventilation, light and power, and with this residual energy demand being met mainly by on site or nearby Renewable Energy Sources.
This project investigated Energy Efficient Design Strategies for the upgrade and refurbishment of an existing multi-storey office building to the nZEB standard. The subject building was the old Aer Lingus Head Office Building, located at Dublin Airport, Swords, Co Dublin. The study was carried out using a range of energy performance analysis tools including Design Builder Dynamic Simulation Software. The focus of the project was to explore Passive Architectural Solutions to deliver optimal “load reductions” – By engineering the fundamental form and envelope of the building correctly to exploit passive heating, cooling, ventilation and lighting resources, the greatest reductions in overall energy use can be achieved. The total Annual Energy Demand for the retrofitted office building has been reduced by over 70%, Annual Space Heating Demand reduced by nearly 90%, and internal comfort conditions for the building maintained without the need for Air Conditioning.
Status: Research Project 2014 (MSc Energy Retrofit Technology)
