The IA ZERO methodology: A roadmap to sustainable refurbishment of buildings through energy simulation

• Miriam Martínez Trinidad ^[1] ; Sanyog Rathod ^[1]
  1. [1] Sol design + consulting, 501 E.13th Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202, USA
• Localización: EESAP13 International Conference 2022, 5-6 October Donostia-San Sebastián: Akten liburua = Libro de actas = Proceedings book / Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura de San Sebastián (dir. congr.), 2022, ISBN 978-84-1319-499-8, págs. 175-188
• Idioma: inglés
• Enlaces
  • Texto Completo Libro
• Resumen

  • For years, Spain has faced the need of renovating its old building stock to address energy efficiency in existing buildings and to meet the targets set by the European markets and standards. Now, in an uncertain post-pandemic era, Spain is starting to react to this need and 6.8 billion euros from the Next Generation funds have been allocated to urban regeneration and building energy retrofits. In this scenario of recovery and sustainable transformation, the IA ZERO methodology is postulated as an alternative to the traditional refurbishment process. Supported by the Basque Professional Association of Energy Managers (APROBASGE) and Biscay’s School of Building Administrators (CAFB) and generated under the ERAIKAL/20 lines of the Government of The Basque Country, the IA ZERO methodology promotes a comprehensive and advanced energy management model for residential buildings and their energy refurbishment. The goal is to provide a systemic procedure and tools that allow developing a diagnosis of the starting point, determining the transformation itinerary, and generating systems or processes to more effectively manage all aspects related to building energy. The IA ZERO approach relies on initial energy audits of the existing conditions and whole-building energy simulations to guide sustainable refurbishments towards Nearly Zero Energy Buildings (NZEB). This paper describes how energy models are used in the IA ZERO methodology to identify weaknesses, to investigate retrofit alternatives, to combine scenarios and to compare them with the performance of the existing building. Energy simulation is a very powerful decision-making tool used to identify synergies that lead to significant energy performance improvements such as the ones that IA ZERO aims to achieve. presented in this paper. This paper presents the goals of the IA ZERO methodology and how energy simulation is used as a key guiding tool to achieve those goals in the retrofit process. The IA ZERO methodology is undergoing a refining and consolidation process through four pilot projects, two of which are exposed in this paper. These projects serve as illustrative case studies for future projects and to better understand the scope, the caveats and the benefits of this innovative approach. It is concluded that IA ZERO stands out from conventional refurbishments and provides a comprehensive roadmap to more sustainable energy retrofits that aims to guide neighborhood communities towards the optimal renovation strategy.