Blog Post 4- How Intelligent Building Technologies Can Be Used to Make A Building More Green

Our project is based on a variation of the “Intelligent vs Green” topic. We aim to explore how these intelligent building technologies are being implemented in the design and operation of buildings to create an overall green building. As intelligent building technologies are developed they primarily focus on making new buildings more efficient to lower operating cost while increasing comfort. Green technologies meet similar goals with a focus on things like utilizing sustainable materials and energy efficient processes. This has led to the two fields coevolving to change the way new buildings are designed and operated.

We plan to start by researching the definitions for what defines an “intelligent” and “green” building. From there we will be finding the technologies that are currently being used or developed to create/operate these building. I suspect that many of these technologies will aim to solve the same problems that designers and operator face which is why they are commonly integrated together in buildings. Both intelligent and green buildings are becoming increasingly popular and regulatory agencies are implementing more strict design requirements that reflect this. Incentive systems are already in place to help push developers to create more efficient buildings, so it makes sense that this will also drive any companies in the technology sector to continue to create products that can be implemented in new and retrofitted buildings.

While doing some preliminary research for this paper I stopped to look at a website that I am currently using. I have an account with Swellinvesting.com, an investing website with a focus on socially responsible companies. The website has 6 portfolios that it manages in various categories like green technologies, renewable energy, zero waste, and disease eradication.  Under the green technologies portfolio, you have companies like Park Electrochemical Corp. who are a materials manufacturer for telecommunications infrastructure, but you also have companies like AutoDesk who create design technologies to help create green and intelligent structures. Swell tracks how these portfolios do against the Russell 3000 and over the last two years the portfolio had performed around 16% better than the market. This reinforces the idea that there is a growing market for these types of technologies and that there will continue to be growth in this area.

   

 Responses:

Chris,

Sounds like a real fun brainstorming session! It will be interesting to see how these “smart” technologies become common place in our homes. I feel like now more than ever the public is more open to new technologies that have the ability to make our lives easier. Things like Amazon’s Alexa are already being implemented into people’s homes and exposing entire families to new technologies. However, I don’t know if homeowners will be interested in having all that data available to them but they would be interested on a system that could update and maintain itself without user input.

The idea of retrofitting old buildings with intelligent devises sounds like a great way to increase the efficiently of outdated structures without a large capital investment.

Isaac,

 I think it is great that you will be applying the engineering skills that you have learned here to teaching others. I think as engineers one of the things you learn how to do is learn new skills quickly and be able to apply them to various projects. This is a skill that can be applied to all fields and can be very valuable. I think in the future their will be more classes focused on technology and how it is implemented in various fields, so being up to date on new programs could be very valuable as an instructor.

Amisial,

We are doing a similar topic and have found that there is a strong connection between intelligent and green technologies. Thankfully there is a lot of research and data available on these types of technologies so researching them should be easy. If companies are able to continue to develop these technologies further the high cost of installation may become less of a factor.

Gibson - B4

I decided to work alone on this project, and choose to research 'intelligent" versus "green" buildings. I will focus on what makes each type of building its own and describe each of its unique charaterictiscs that attracts consumers to build these type of projects. One major aspect, I have discovered so far is the way to optimize but also hvae the most energy efiicent building to be the most diffcult challegene for both buildings types.

A further look into, a intelligent vs. a green builing break down of a power grid is depicted in the figure below. A key component to conserveing the energy in these type of proejcts comes down to the swtich agents and how quicly the buildings systems interacts with the surrpoding as well as interior envirnonments.

Response 1: Jacob Wahbeh

I appreciate you honestly, in your post becuase during my own research I have come across serval varying definition for 'intelligent' and 'green' buildings. So it is good to know that I am not the only class member going through the same issue.

Response 2: Chris Thach

Great post! I really enjoyed reading your post about the new Smart Houses that are beginning to turn into a new must have at top ausment parks like Diseny World. The study of intelligent applicances I belive is the nect step to having completey efficent inteillgent buildngs.

Response 3: Bach Tran Nam

I found your post about the tallest structures in the world to catch my eye in the fact that they tpo are implenting this new type of technology in their buildings as well. 

Blog 4 -Intelligent Building vs. Green Building- Jianfeng Xiao

I am working with Mariano Amisial on this project. The title is Green Building Vs Intelligent Building. We will explore the similarity and difference between green and intelligent building. We choose this topic, because we are interested in the development and application of these two buildings. Through doing this project, we want to clearly distinguish these two types of building and we will focus on their impacts on environment in multiple areas and how intelligent building technologies can be used to develop the green building.

We will start by explaining the definition and concept of both building. Although intelligent technologies can often be used in developing a green building, they are not very similar. From our research, green building is considered as ecological and sustainable building. It requires to consider the water use, electric use and indoor environment quality in plan, design, construction and operation processes. Intelligent building is to use technologies and building process to reduce the environment impacts, to increase employee productivity and to convenient the building’s owner. Then, we will discuss the advantage and disadvantage of these two buildings. Through our research, we found some buildings that are both intelligent and green. We will use two recently built buildings as example for illustration. There are many intelligent technologies such as LEED and building information system are used in the intelligent building. These technologies can also be used in green building. We will analyze the advantage and disadvantage of applying these technologies on the green building. In addition, we will discuss both building’s impact on the environment. As we all know, green building is built in green standard, which has less impact on the environment. Therefore, we will try to find out what impacts might have during the construction process. For intelligent building, it might have higher impacts on the environment because of the technologies used. Intelligent building can be very smart and luxury that do not use ecofriendly materials for construction. These are problems we will analyze in the research.  

The most challenge of this project is to find appropriate evident to support our thesis. There are many areas can be explored in this topic. We should avoid too vague or too broad exploration. It is important for us to focus on one or two areas to have a deep analysis.

Source Cited:

A.H. Buckman, M. Mayfield, Stephen B.M. Beck, (2014) "What is a Smart Building?", Smart and Sustainable Built Environment, Vol. 3 Issue: 2, pp.92-109, https://doi.org/10.1108/SASBE-01-2014-0003

Sarah Hollis Comments:

Sarah,

Your ideas of the advancement of BIM in workflow is very interesting. With the development of BIM, the computer or system technologies will perform important roles in a project. I think you can focus on how develop in BIM will affect the workflow currently and in the future. In addition, their application in engineering and architecture areas can be analyzed.  

Luciana Tangari Comments:

Luciana,

Your project seems very interesting. I am also doing the comparison between green and intelligent building on my project. I will focus on how intelligent technologies can develop the green building. I agree with you that the distinguish of the concept is very important because these two buildings look similar. If concept is not clear, it will hard to find appropriate evident to support the thesis.

Cody Johnson Comments:

Cody,

Your project of 3D scanning seems very interesting. I agree that the develop of 3D scanning can create the model that help constructor and designer to better measure the site. It is like Revit and AutoCAD. Your can have a better understand of site through the 3D model compare to the 2D drawing. But one concern I have is that the cost of 3D scanning might be higher. Contractors might not want to spend extra money.

Dee Dee Strohl - Blog 4

Term Paper: Green versus Intelligent Building Technology

For the term project, Andrew and I are writing a paper about the difference between green buildings and intelligent buildings. We’re planning to look at the two through the scope of technology used to design the buildings and the technology implemented in the buildings. We also will look at how the technology used in both aspects affect the life cycle of the building and improve it. Our general definition for a green building is: a building that takes human health and environmental impact into consideration while an intelligent building is: building that utilizes systems that allow for automatic and centralized control of a buildings energy system (HVAC, lights, etc.). With research we plan to make our definitions more concrete. One goal for the project is to learn more about the current technology used in both types of buildings. Some examples of this are: solar panels, LEED considerations, energy analysis, high efficiency mechanical systems, lighting, and building automation systems.

This topic is interesting to me because I’m minoring in Sustainability in the Built Environment. The SBE minor focuses specifically on analyzing future design challenges from a sustainability perspective. In classes we’ve discussed integrated design processes, the LEED program, and other aspects of green buildings. The courses have made me think about how a building is designed to be “green” and focuses on the total building life cycle. The classes haven’t specifically discussed intelligent buildings and the technology associated with them. Thus, I haven’t had much exposure to intelligent buildings. This paper will allow me to gain a better understanding of the overlap and differences of features in the two.

Some challenges we might run into is whether our scope is too broad. As we continue to research the topics we may find that looking at both the design and implemented technology might be too much. If that’s the case, we’ll re-evaluate the paper and decide which path will be best for comparing and contrasting. One consideration to be made is that technology is constantly changing and current usage can become out of date quickly. This can affect the life cycle of the building.

COMMENTS:

Sarah Hollis:

Your paper sounds interesting! I’m interested in seeing what people in the industry say about BIM and what a “good workflow” is. I know in my experience I’ve seen how quickly tasks can be done because of Revit and AutoCAD. I worked for the city and saw the hand drawn plans and how tedious the process was. Now we have BIM and changes can be made with just a few clicks.

Cody Johnson:

 I honestly had never thought about the possibilities of a 3D scanner in both design and construction fields. Using them to map existing conditions would be incredibly helpful, especially if the structural or mechanical systems are very complicated. I saw Lucy commented about how helpful this technology would be for pharma labs. From working on HVAC systems for labs, I know the existing conditions can be complicated and difficult to show precisely on plans.  This technology would be incredibly useful in those scenarios.

Dung Tran:

Your project is super cool. I love that you’re taking this as an opportunity to expand your knowledge of BIM and the different systems that go into a building. I know next to nothing about creating structural systems in Revit so doing something like this would be beneficial for me too. I wonder if you could do a structural analysis of the building in Revit as well, just to learn another aspect of the software.

Advancements in BIM and Changing Workflows - Sarah Hollis

Blog Post 4- Project

The title of my paper is ‘How are the advancements in BIM altering the standard workflow in engineering and architect practices?’.

I am going to write a paper on how the major advancements in BIM, namely REVIT and AutoCad, have changed the design workflow that small and large companies adopt. I will then see what those in the field think is going to happen to the workflow in the future. With the future of BIM potentially requiring much less man power what will happen to the workflows. Will this differ in large and small companies. From preliminary research, it appears that projects, in general, are speeding up due to many factors, but most notably due to automatic copying between sheets.

The main part of my paper is split into two parts, previous changes to BIM and what may happen in the future. I want to also make note of what is considered a ‘good workflow’ and how this definition may become something different entirely with advancements in BIM. I will also make reference to how fast these advancements in BIM are being made, can small companies keep up with these rapid changes in BIM which ultimately result in new workflows required.

I am hoping to get opinions from those in large and small architect practices to establish where workflow is currently at and where they envisage it going.

In the conclusion I hope to be able to answer the following question, what is changing to common practice workflows and why is this change occurring. Having done only a small amount of research so far, it appears that workflows are shifting to be much more computer based, meetings are taking place virtually. There also appears to be much more fluidity between professions (electric, plumbing architecture etc) as we are leaning towards one master model for the entire project.

Some links I have used are:

https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1278800

https://www.enventive.com/en/mechanical-design-workflow/

Brad,

I like your idea that 3D modeling is not relevant for everything It is important with these new technologies to be extremely sensitive to people who have been doing their trade for many years and are extremely good and efficient at what they do. I had never really considered 3D scanning before, I think this is a really neat idea and could be extremely useful at determining overlaps within mechanical piping.

Allison,

I like the idea of your project due to the completely different challenges that will be faced. The different conditions on Mars and its distance from Earth will make this extremely interesting and extremely relevant due to the increasing population and decreasing amounts of space on Earth. If automated construction can be achieved on Mars, then there is no reason as to why we could not adopt this on earth, to help with the lack of construction workers to meet our current demand on construction.

B4 - Term Project Description

Thomas Sisson and I will be working together on the term project “Automated, Lightweight Construction on Mars”. Our project explores the idea of autonomous building construction in an isolated environment roughly 140 million miles from Earth. The main goal of this project is to research a construction method that can be deployed prior to astronauts reaching the planet. The primary benefit to autonomous construction in this situation is that we can send up a construction rocket to begin construction of a colony before humans get there. This would save on construction time and could even prevent loss of life in the event that the construction rocket is damaged en route to the location.

My group and I chose to do this project since it directly relates to our senior design project which is to build a self-sustaining colony on Mars. The idea of living on Mars is becoming more and more probable, and the use of automated construction methods are most likely going to become a requirement since traditional construction methods are challenging in a foreign environment. While the futuristic skyscrapers that have been the backdrop of many sci-fi films are still lightyears away, traditional construction methods are both time and money intensive. The use of automated construction methods would be cost and time efficient, as well as prevent any loss of human life. These methods aren’t just for building in space either, automated construction could be implemented now and would impact the way construction is completed on Earth.

This project relates to intelligent buildings because it takes the topics we have been discussing in class, such as robotics and artificial intelligence, and directly relates it to designing and constructing buildings. Automated construction is most likely going to be the next step in the engineering and construction industry and is already prominent in some countries.

There a couple problems that come with this project, with the primary being location. While we have a general map of Mars from what was gathered from rovers and satellites, it doesn’t have any of the technologies, such as GPS tracking, which is what we use for robots on Earth. Another challenge we face is power, all the methods we have researched for this project will require a way to recharge since batteries don’t last forever and solar power is 40% of that on Earth. A way of working around this by creating a colony that uses lighter materials which will reduce the power requirements. The weaker gravity on Mars also poses a challenge for drone construction, the major issue is not knowing how much lift will be generated on Mars. This does not eliminate drones all together, since they could still be used for ensuring proper alignment of the structure.

Comments:
Mark O,
I really like that your team is deciding to follow the design process used in the industry since it's what you'll probably end up doing eventually! I think this is a great way to experiment and play around with the other things Revit can do aside from the architectural and structural elements. I've always wanted to do this myself, since we don't get a lot of classes that allow us to explore the MEP side of Revit. I would love to read the rest of your experience!

Kerry M,
I remember watching that movie! It was actually one of the movies that sparked my interest in buildings and the idea of a "smart" house. I like how you addressed the idea that only new construction can be "smart", since most people don't have the money to move into a new place. Intelligent appliances would be the easiest way for an existing home to turn into a smart home.

Jordan S,
I like that you are incorporating one of your interests with this term project. I think the idea of having robots in an archival space such as a library is very interesting and is most likely another step in the way of intelligent buildings. I'm assuming that these robots will be using some type of code to locate the book required, but what would happen if the book is misplaced? I'm sure this issue would come up in your research, I look forward to reading more about it!

Thomas Sisson - Blog Post 4

Our Project:        

          I am working on a project with Allison Abad. We are exploring the use of automated building technologies in a truly automated atmosphere – about 140 million miles from civilization. Our hope is to have a structural and foundation system that is deployable without interaction from astronauts. This would allow us to stage construction in an earlier mission, and send the astronauts separately. If this happens, then the time for construction left for the astronauts is greatly impacted, since excavation and foundation take up the majority of our construction timeline. The deployable structural framing would be an added bonus, since that would reduce the need for supplies that the astronauts would need before moving in to the building itself and begin life support/food production.

          This project was chosen because it is directly related to our senior design project. In addition to that, Martian civilization is rapidly becoming feasible, and automated construction solutions could become a necessary norm for construction on a foreign planet where traditional construction would be difficult. It may be a long time before high rise structures on mars become remotely feasible, but such construction would require all workers to be fully suited and protected, and the equipment costs would be astronomical. The implementation of automated technology solutions would reduce costs, and end up being much safer and faster in an unhospitable environment. This can also impact earthen construction in environments that are difficult for human construction workers, such as nuclear power plants that need to be capped or perhaps subterranean/submerged construction should such projects emerge in the future. Even average construction could be impacted with these technologies.

          This is related to intelligent buildings, at least by mine and my groups definition, as it is designing and constructing buildings using the latest technologies and automation. Artificial intelligence driven construction is one major part of intelligent buildings that I believe will be the next step after self-regulation, which is already emerging in some buildings today. Although self-regulation is an important part of intelligent building design, and is implemented in our Martian Colony, it is not highlighted in this project as it broadens the scope.  

          There are a couple major challenges to our project, with the primary being location. Mars is not only desolate and hostile to human life, but it is completely devoid of some of the basic technologies we use for robotics on earth. The biggest technology we lack on Mars is the lack of a Global Positioning System (GPS). I believe we can work around this using relative positioning to the landing crafts, and waypoint beacons that can be used to triangulate positioning for our autonomous vehicles. We do not need to worry about absolute position with mars, all we need to worry about is that piles are spaced evenly and dimensions are correct. Another major challenge is powering all of our equipment, as batteries will not last forever and incident sunlight is about 40% of that on earth. We are working around this by using a building system comprised entirely of lightweight materials, which in conjunction with the lower gravity on mars will reduce power requirements. This may allow us to use batteries, supplemented by either fuel cells or perhaps quickly deployable solar arrays. The challenge is air density, which limits our use of conventional flying drones as lift will be much harder to generate. Because of this we are only using drones as a potential solution to the issue of positioning and direction of our construction equipment and hazard terrain detection.

Comments:

Zac A:
I really enjoy your project scope, since it was something I strongly considered doing as well. We really do not get enough Revit practice as students and for the most part we must push boundaries in our own time and then fit these projects to match what our classes are asking for. Your building looks interesting, and the use of curved features is creative for the amphitheater. Your implementation of complete mechanical, electrical, and plumbing plans is going to be pretty important as a self learning tool, as well as something that I agree BIM is becoming more important for. My question is are you guys also going to be experimenting with families, or is that simply too much on top of your current work load. Good luck with the building!

Kerry M:
I vaguely remember that movie. Mostly, I just recall the nightmares it used to give me, but also a major interest in automation. I don't think capital is going to be a major issue simply because of how small and affordable computers are becoming. Having a computer powerful enough to automate the appliances in a house during the production of that movie may have seemed crazy, but now the automation can be driven through cloud computing or even simply the appliances talking to each other.

I also like how you highlighted the clash between good information and biased information when dealing with the many appliance manufacturers and am interested in how you are going to overcome different manufacturers trying to monopolize on the technology, or at least make it harder for other brands to interface.

Jordan S:
I really like your take on what an intelligent building is capable of. I have forgotten that not everything is digital, and some things will be impossible to simply store in a database. Such a space seems like it would be incredibly important for museums or libraries that are storing older documents or items of interest, where the librarian can simply select the item they want on the computer and have it delivered to them safely and without damage. This could also allow warehouse designs that are much more compact and do not need to account for much human traffic. I am very interested to see what kind of technology you implement. I have a brother who is working on the large scale applications that you mentioned, where they use drones to automatically tag and search for items in a warehouse. For the smaller applications I would like to see what kind of technologies you come up with.