AIA San Antonio COTE Early Energy Modeling Workshop - March 21, 2024

Interested in learning to use Autodesk Revit and Autodesk Insight to perform early energy modeling on your projects? If so, this three-hour in-person workshop is for you!

Serving on the AIA national Committee on the Environment (COTE) leadership, I love supporting local COTE events and sharing knowledge!

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Creating a Hybrid Energy Analysis Model (EAM) in Revit

I created an 8-minute video highlighting the opportunity to develop an Energy Analysis Model (EAM) using both massing and building elements within Revit.

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New YouTube Videos - Early Energy Modeling Course

I've added three new videos to the Early Energy Modeling series on YouTube.

See the new videos, and the entire series, via this YouTube Playlist link: https://bit.ly/3O9ZtuK

The new videos were created using Revit 2024 and recorded in 4k.

Internal Loads

Learn how to manage light power density, latent/sensible heat per person, set points, ACH, schedules, & more.  https://youtu.be/n0oG3bkti3E

FYI: I will create another video soon showing how internal loads can be defined on a space-by-space basis.

Building Evenlope Settings

Learn how to apply and manage the building envelope's thermal resistance and thermal mass properties. This demonstration looks at both a Revit model and a Revit mass and the various ways these properties are applied to the energy analysis model. https://youtu.be/HMUwTRD8w54

Defining Glazing

This video shows how glazing can be defined very accurately... including custom SHGC, VLT, and U values. https://youtu.be/ARijTvuOw7E

I plan on doing another video looking specifically at glazing.

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For BIM Chapters updates, follow @DanStine_MN on Twitter or connect on LinkedIn

Lighting design professionals: check out my Revit & ElumTools training https://bit.ly/3NJjhCV

Early Energy Modeling with Autodesk Insight - Free YouTube Course

The third of three courses I am making freely available is fully uploaded: Early Energy Modeling with Autodesk Insight!

This course covers the same workflows we use at Lake|Flato, which results in the data we enter into the AIA 2030 Committment DDX... all of which is free if you already have Autodesk Revit.

Course highlights:

• 14 Videos
• 1.0+ hours

This course is ideal for anyone interested in early energy modeling in an architectural practice. Even experienced Insight users will find value in the tips and tricks offered throughout the course.

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IBPSA-USA Panel Discussion - Performance Modeling in early design phases

Next week I will be participating in a panel discussion on performance modeling in early design phases.

Attendees with hear how three architecture firms, Lake|Flato, Gensler, and CannonDesign, approach performance modeling in the early design phases!

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Troubleshooting Revit EAM Creation + Insight and Systems Analysis Issues

As with any sophisticated program developed for a professional application, there is a learning curve and a number of things that can go wrong. Some of the problems arise from user error while others can be bugs or limitations within the application.

This post is planned to be a living document on things that can go wrong, and what to do about it, when creating the energy analysis model (EAM) within Revit, as well as troubleshooting problems, further downstream, within Autodesk Insight and Revit Systems Analysis tools and workflows.

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Penn State Presentation on Early Energy Modeling

Earlier this week I had the opportunity to present a small portion of Lake|Flato's early energy modeling workflow to professor Rahman Azari's architecture students at Penn State. Today's post offers a brief recap of the presentation.

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Insight Workflows - Exporting Results with Higher Accuracy

When performing more refined comparisons within Autodesk Insight, it is helpful to export the results to a table, for a more accurate pEUI value... up to 8 decimal places. Today's post is an example from a current Lake|Flato project:)

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New Lake|Flato Blog Post - Early Energy Modeling workflow and Comparing Tools

I recently published about early energy modeling on the Dogrun, the Lake|Flato blog. Today's post highlights the topic and provides a link to the full article.

This post features a current project, the Bachtle Residence in California, which  is based on our Porch House concept, a library of modular living and sleeping rooms.

Also featured, is a comparison of results from Revit + Insight and Rhino + Climate Studio!

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WWR Calculation Method in Revit + Insight Workflow

When an Energy Analysis Model (EAM) is pushed to Autodesk Insight for analysis, we find that the Revit Model's Window to Wall Ratio (WWR) is listed as the BIM Setting. Today's post will show how this number is derived... which is rather clever!

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Revit + Insight Workflow - Defining Spandrel Panels in Curtainwall

A few weeks ago I was presenting a three hour workshop on Revit + Insight for the AIA San Antonio COTE committee, sponsored by Autodesk. A good question came up about how to define a spandrel panel within a curtainwall. My answer was "I don't know, but it will probably be answered in a blog post someday". That "someday" is today:)

I wrote this post about that workshop: AIA San Antonio - COTE Committee workshop - Early Energy Modeling with Revit and Insight.

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Insight Energy Model - Mixed-use facility and part-time space usage

For mixed-use facilities and areas with reduced occupancy, we need to use the Space command, in Autodesk Revit, to properly define this for the Insight energy model. That is the topic of today's post.

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AIA San Antonio - COTE Committee workshop - Early Energy Modeling with Revit and Insight

Interested in learning how to use Autodesk Revit and Autodesk Insight to perform early energy modeling on your projects? If so, this three hour virtual workshop is for you!

The workshop is hosted by AIA San Antonio and sponsored by Autodesk!

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Creating a custom Thermal Asset for a Revit Material - early energy modeling with Insight

When using the Autodesk Revit + Insight workflow for early architectural energy modeling, and using the Detailed Items option which uses the Thermal Assets associated with each Revit material, it is often necessary to create a custom asset for a specific product.

In this workflow, the custom thermal resistance and mass values are what get feed into the DOE 2.2. energy modeling engine, for walls, floors roofs, etc.

That is the topic of today's post...

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Derated R-Value - Stud Wall Construction - Revit + Insight Workflow Example

When code (e.g. ASHRAE 90.1) says the minimum insulation value for a wall is R-13 in a stud framed wall, R-13 is not the input you would use in an energy modeling program. This is primarily due to the thermal bridging of the studs, which occur every 16 to 24 inches.

In today's post, I will show how Revit automatically accounts for this.

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Early Energy Modeling Presentation at UTSA - Yesterday

Yesterday I had the good fortune of presenting to architecture students at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA). This was a great opportunity to share knowledge with a local architecture program... as I am the Director of Design Technology at Lake | Flato Architects in San Antonio, Texas.

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Glazing and Orientation Study in Autodesk Insight

Last week I did a quick study, using Revit + Insight, to highlight the pEUI sensitivity to orientation, emphasized by only having glazing on the east side of the building.

I also drastically adjusted the glazing performance within the Revit model, effectively adjusting the BIM Setting in Insight, which confirmed that is not required due to the ability to test inputs analytically within Insight.

Finally, I modeled three different sun shades to see how this would affect the results.

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AIA Philly COTE Recordings - Environmental Design Tools

Per my post from about a week ago, AIA COTE Philly 2030 Working Group - Environmental Design Tools, I am following up to share the links to the recorded presentations.

Get an overview, in 20 minutes each, of the five main tools designed for architects to do early energy modeling; Sefaira, Cove.Tool, Insight, Climate Studio, and Rhino/Grasshopper/LadyBug/Honeybee.

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NREL Partnership Strengthens Integration of Analytics and Building Design

The National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) posted an article highlighting their partnership with Autodesk around the new Systems Analysis feature in Revit 2020.1. Today's post covers that and related resources on this new feature.

This new feature...

"...allows architects and engineers to make these decisions as well as those related to heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system selection and sizing with greater confidence and from a more realistic and quantitative footing."

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Sustainable Design Starts with You!

Most people I talk to within the architectural profession say their firm does not do enough, if any, energy modeling. Surprisingly, less than half of the firms who have committed to the AIA's 2030 Commitment have not reported their portfolios (2019 Report, pg. 26). Additionally, the AIA 2030 By the Numbers Report says...

"In 2018, on average, modeled projects have an approximately 25% higher pEUI reduction than non modeled projects. Yet, the percentage of projects being modeled has not significantly changed since 2017, hovering around 50% for both the number of projects and the percentage of total GSF. This represents a significant missed opportunity." (2019 Report, pg. 28)

My impression is, in addition to the pressures of project deadlines, people just don't know where to start. The barrier to entry can appear especially limiting to those without any formal training around sustainable design, environmental science or energy modeling in particular.

Regardless of the preconceived obstacles,
sustainable design begins with you!

Thus, today's motivational post will highlight several resources and ideas you can use to develop your professional skills, raise the bar at your firm, and make the world a better place:)

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