IES launches free building energy and carbon assessment sotware IES VE-WARE at AIA convention in Boston. VE-WARE will be released in June 2008
(Link)
Saturday, May 17, 2008
IES VE-WARE
Monday, May 12, 2008
Green Building Studio 3.2 - The first Autodesk update
This is the first release of Green Building Studio after the recent Autodesk acquisition and it brings a few changes. The most noticeable one is tighter integration with the 2009 line of the Revit platform via the External Application addition to the Tool pull down menu.
The second update is the client application for all of the other BIM platforms that can produce gbXML files. Therefore, AutoCAD Architecture 2009 and MEP 2008 and 2009, as well as ArchiCAD users will still have to submit their files outside of their applications.
I almost forgot, black is the new green as the Green Building Studio web interface has changed to resemble the ADSK home page.
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Personal wind turbines
The entire product line of Wind-solar hybrid generation system by Loopwing Co. is quite fascinating and quite applicable for various environments from residential areas to remote alpine locations.
(Link)
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Revit Architecture 2009 to gbXML – Problematic Structure
| RAC 2008 | RAC 2009 | |
| int.floor | 232 | 3965 |
| int.wall | 232 | 305 |
| ext.wall | 376 | 8830 |
| roof | 3 | 665 |
| raised floor | 183 | 650 |
| ceiling | 0 | 2 |
| shade | 924 | 863 |
| und.wall | 40 | 2068 |
| und.slab | 33 | 1066 |
| opening | 1311 | 1457 |
| spaces | 76 | 86 |
This morning I decided to put a simple model created in RAC 2008 to the test and, since I suspected that having the structural elements might have something to do with XML output, I placed a simple round (pay attention to the word “round”) concrete column in the center of this test structure. Analysis of the 2008 XML file did not show anything unusual, so I proceeded and opened the same file in RAC 2009. Not to my surprise the newly generated 2009 file quadrupled in size and these are the findings:
| RAC 2008 | RAC 2009 | |
| slab.grade | 1 | 32 |
| roof | 1 | 32 |
| ext.wall | 4 | 36 |
In order to make previously created RAC models applicable, one should declare all of the structural elements as non Room Bounding and by simply doing this the gbXML output from RAC 2009 will be almost identical to the one from RAC 2008. This will increase the usable room area within the project, but we can all agree that this is the small price to pay for being green, or maybe not?
The only slight difference in the file size will be caused by the changed nomenclature within the 2009 generated XML file that is used for more eloquent description of exported surfaces.You can download both the 2008 and 2009 samples and their corresponding XML files by following this link.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Green Building Studio - Ingenuity Point Winner
Green Building Studio helps designers, architects and contractors build energy-efficient structures with as small a carbon footprint as possible. Its web-based analysis services gives architects and other building industry professionals an intuitive way to take a building design from carbon-positive to carbon-neutral in a matter of minutes versus weeks.
(Read more)
DOE - Launches Website with Energy Saving Tips
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today launched a new internet feature which provides tips to consumers on how to make everyday Earth Day by making smart energy choices to save money while protecting the environment. The interactive web page shows consumers steps to use less energy with household electronics, lighting, and appliances to save on monthly bills and how to avoid wasting energy by improving the energy efficiency of their homes and cars.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
ecoDriver - reducing your CO2 footprint
ecoDriver suite of products have been specifically developed for companies and institutions who are keen to reduce their utility costs but who are primarily concerned with improving their organisation’s sustainability.
- Monitor energy & water usage, business travel, etc
- Alert consumers when consumption exceeds targets
- Prompt action to reduce consumption
- Provide feedback on success of action taken
- Engage employees in sustainability endeavours