In this post, I ran a Lake|Flato project through Enscape Impact, then made some design changes, and dropped it into three other climate zones to test the sensitivity of the changes... are they what I expected? Read on to find out:)
The development of Enscape Impact presents an interesting opportunity for architects. The feature is powered by IES and works entirely within Enscape, apart from any proprietary data from the design platform (Revit, SketchUp, Rhino, etc.).
Related blog post I wrote for Enscape: Embracing Design Performance and Fast Insights in Architectural Workflows with Enscape Impact
While it is still early in its development, the initial results are promising and worth following. Maybe Enscape has another game-changer on its hands.
The Test Project
This is one of our Porch House designs - a modular system based on a library of pre-designed living and sleeping rooms (Porch House has been around for over ten years now).
I wrote an article for the Lake|Flato blog comparing two other early energy modeling programs using this project: Early Energy Modeling and Comparing Tools to Validate Results.
Design Changes
The three numbers listed in the image below are:
- the original model (which matches the first image above)
- removing the exterior shades - the EUI went up due to solar heat gain
- reducing the window-to-wall ratio - the EUI sent down due to improved overall envelop and lower solar heat gain
Different Climate Zones
Another test worth exploring is what happens when the project is picked up and dropped in a few other climate zones. For good measure, I tested my hometown, Duluth, MN, which is ASHRAE’s climate zone 7 reference city (the coldest climate zone in the US), San Antonio, TX (where I currently live), and Miami, FL.
Of course, these numbers could be improved if we could modify the envelope and HVAC inputs (which Enscape Impact does not yet support). However, the relative difference appears to be accurate based on adjusting a single input, the location in this case.
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