Retrofit cost-effectiveness: Estonian apartment buildings

The economic viability and investment cost of the energy retrofit of apartment buildings are analysed through different energy efficiency levels. To analyse retrofit policy cost-optimal energy efficiency levels and investment costs, a baseline of measured actual energy usage of apartment buildings was created and then individual energy-saving measures and retrofit packages were composed. The cost-optimal level over a 20-year period for apartment building retrofit was a low-energy-building energy performance level, with an investment cost of €150–170/m². Retrofit to low energy building level would be economically viable but the investment capability of apartment owner associations is found to be insufficient for the necessary investments to achieve low-energy-building energy performance. Therefore, it is necessary to determine what levels of financial support can encourage retrofit to occur. The analysis of the current retrofit shows that subsides will increase investment by apartment owner associations into energy efficiency improvements. The target group for energy efficiency retrofit subsidies should be apartment buildings that reach low energy building performance level or at least match the energy performance requirement for new buildings.     

Modernism sustained: Bucharest in the 1930s and 1990s

During the 1930s the social life of Bucharest rivalled that elsewhere in Europe. Culturally and artistically Bucharest embraced dynamic, innovative and avant-garde attitudes, which were prompted by the establishment of a Greater Romania after the end of the first World War. The artists Brancusi, Janco, Mary, the composer Enescu, the philosopher Eliade, were recognised internationally. The development of Bucharest was based on progressive theoretical ideas and over a period of ten years its appearance was transformed by modernist buildings. The individual villas and apartment buildings which formed the bulk of this transformation were achieved by private enterprise and represented an innovative architecture of social equilibrium which was entirely modernist; quite unlike the modernist social housing programmes elsewhere in Europe which were the products of state intervention and industry. By contrast, state and civic building programmes in Bucharest realised an architecture which retained classical conventions to become austere, sombre and repetitive. Since 1989, Romania has had to adjust to the rigours of market economics. The intervening fifty years of totalitarianism kept the achievements of the inter-war years under wraps, but these are now being rediscovered by a generation for whom they are the nearest representation of democracy on Romanian territory. The new-found democracy of the market place brings this period of cultural achievement into sharp focus, in the hope that it may act as a catalyst for the resolution of today's extensive urban deprivations.     

Modernism sustained: Bucharest in the 1930s and 1990s

During the 1930s the social life of Bucharest rivalled that elsewhere in Europe. Culturally and artistically Bucharest embraced dynamic, innovative and avant-garde attitudes, which were prompted by the establishment of a Greater Romania after the end of the first World War. The artists Brancusi, Janco, Mary, the composer Enescu, the philosopher Eliade, were recognised internationally. The development of Bucharest was based on progressive theoretical ideas and over a period of ten years its appearance was transformed by modernist buildings. The individual villas and apartment buildings which formed the bulk of this transformation were achieved by private enterprise and represented an innovative architecture of social equilibrium which was entirely modernist; quite unlike the modernist social housing programmes elsewhere in Europe which were the products of state intervention and industry. By contrast, state and civic building programmes in Bucharest realised an architecture which retained classical conventions to become austere, sombre and repetitive. Since 1989, Romania has had to adjust to the rigours of market economics. The intervening fifty years of totalitarianism kept the achievements of the inter-war years under wraps, but these are now being rediscovered by a generation for whom they are the nearest representation of democracy on Romanian territory. The new-found democracy of the market place brings this period of cultural achievement into sharp focus, in the hope that it may act as a catalyst for the resolution of today's extensive urban deprivations.     

The selection of effective retrofit scenarios for panel houses in urban neighborhoods based on expected energy savings and increase in market value: The Vilnius case

Some of the problems associated with assessing the retrofit effectiveness of apartment buildings in urban areas are considered. The retrofit of houses should be followed by the amelioration of their surroundings. The priority order of districts to be renovated depends on the condition of the buildings in a district and on strategic urban development programmes. In order to determine the profitability of investments in housing retrofit, a number of retrofit scenarios should be developed. The authors of this paper offer a new approach to determining the retrofit effectiveness of houses based both on expected energy savings and the increase in market value of renovated buildings. In line with the proposed approach, retrofit scenarios for apartment buildings in Vilnius were developed, i.e. retrofit investment packages for various districts were prepared and arranged in the priority order for their application according to the method of geographical analysis suggested by the authors.     

A screening methodology for implementing cost effective energy retrofit measures in Canadian office buildings

Private and public sectors own and operate an array of office buildings that consume energy and contribute to the emission of greenhouse gases (GHG). Energy demands can be reduced by applying energy retrofit measures (ERMs) to existing buildings. The choice of ERMs involves evaluation of applicability, energy end uses and cost of application versus energy savings. This paper describes a methodology developed to screen office buildings for their current level of energy consumption and potential for retrofit application. Selection of an optimal set of ERMs is influenced by climate, occupancy, heating and cooling systems, envelope properties and building geometry. When assessing the implications of applying ERMs to a large building stock it is vital to screen the complete building set for optimal retrofit opportunities. This can be accomplished by characterizing office building stock into a manageable set of archetypes and simulating building operation using energy simulation software. Using regression analyses, a model was developed for estimating the energy consumption. Present value analysis was used to optimize the evaluation of the various ERMs. The methodology developed can be used to simplify the ranking of buildings for retrofit; to select and combine ERMs, and to plan energy and GHG reduction activities.     

Spatial heterogeneities,institutions, and income: Evidence for Brazil

Political institutions are an essential component to explain income variation. Brazilian municipalities are characterized by a great contrast in the colonization process and its impacts on the current income level and distribution, and other development aspects. This study analyzes the spatial heterogeneity of the relationship between institutional quality and the municipalities' economic development. We use a spatial moving window method applied to weighted regressions—Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR). We find evidence that good institutions increase income and other variables related to economic development. In addition, the institutional quality influence on economic development measures is distinct across the Brazilian regions.     

Green roofs; building energy savings and the potential for retrofit

Green roofs are a passive cooling technique that stop incoming solar radiation from reaching the building structure below. Many studies have been conducted over the past 10 years to consider the potential building energy benefits of green roofs and shown that they can offer benefits in winter heating reduction as well as summer cooling.This paper reviews the current literature and highlights the situations in which the greatest building energy savings can be made. Older buildings with poor existing insulation are deemed to benefit most from a green roof as current building regulations require such high levels of insulation that green roofs are seen to hardly affect annual building energy consumption.As over half of the existing UK building stock was built before any roof insulation was required, it is older buildings that will benefit most from green roofs. The case for retrofitting existing buildings is therefore reviewed and it is found there is strong potential for green roof retrofit in the UK.     

建筑运行能耗监测与节能诊断系统的开发

国家机关办公建筑和大型公共建筑的高耗能问题日益突出,该类建筑的节能改革正成为当前建筑节能工作的重点,因此做好此类建筑运行能耗尤其是暖通空调设备运行能耗的监测与节能诊断分析对实现"十一五"节能目标有重要意义.本文设计开发了建筑运行能耗监测与节能诊断系统硬件子系统,该系统不仅能监测耗能量,还能监测用能品质.主要研究内容包括以MS SQL Server 2000作为平台设计了能耗监测与数据信息数据库系统,开发了建筑运行能耗监测数据采集服务器程序与客户端查询分析程序,建筑用户凭密码可在网上查询最新的监测数据并得到分析报告,从而帮助建筑用户实现能源系统由粗放型管理转变为精细型、科学化管理.在此系统基础上,通过工程案例分析,发现空调系统中存在严重的"大流量、小温差"现象和电力系统中存在"三相不平衡"能源浪费问题.     

Optimising portfolio loss reduction using a first-order reliability method sensitivity analysis

Advancements in loss estimation methodologies for building portfolios provide an opportunity for pre-disaster risk mitigation, particularly through structural retrofit. Budget constraints, however, limit which vulnerable buildings within a region are to be retrofitted to desirable levels of seismic resistance. This paper presents a new reliability-based approach to prioritise retrofit strategies to support regional earthquake risk mitigation efforts. The proposed framework uses the first-order reliability method (FORM) to evaluate a probability distribution of repair costs for a suite of spatially distributed buildings. Sensitivity measures computed within the FORM analysis are paired with retrofit costs. The proposed method is applied to a San Francisco neighbourhood building inventory, and results suggest which building categories should be upgraded to minimise estimated post-earthquake repair costs. The importance of spatial correlation as well as the level of loss to be minimised is investigated relative to cost-effective retrofit spending.     

4C营销理论下的建筑节能改造研究

建筑是能源的消耗大户,我国既有建筑的存量很大,建筑节能改造能有效地减少既有建筑的能耗,但在实际项目中,建筑节能改造的效果与原先设计目标有着很大偏差,其中“人为因素”是最主要的原因,建筑节能改造市场化将有助于解决这个问题。本文引入经济学中的4C营销概念来探讨使建筑节能改造市场化可能性,分析了其面临的原因以及可能的应对方法。