Operational Energy Optimizing in Office Buildings: A Simulation-based Green Design Approach

The building sector consumes a sizable amount of global energy. Globally, developers are interested in reducing the cost of the operational energy of buildings. Green building certification has been initiated to promote the optimization of operational energy use and sustainable development. The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification guidelines provide a rating system for buildings to obtain green certification. This manuscript presents a case study that was carried out to estimate the potential operational energy savings in an office building construction project carried out in a tropical climate. A baseline design for the conventional building was carried out, based on the guidelines given in ASHRAE 90.1. To improve the energy savings, a green design was carried out, by following LEED guidelines, focusing on obtaining the LEED-Gold status. The consumption of energy by each equipment was calculated using Integrated Environmental Solution (IES) simulation software for a period of 365 days for the baseline and the proposed green designs. According to the findings, 23% of the electricity energy can be saved from the baseline design.