Who is this for? Architects, Engineers, and other building professionals performing energy analyses who want to understand the relationship between Vasari, Revit, and Green Building Studio, and get an overview of the Green Building Studio features.
Takeaway: Autodesk Green Building Studio, (GBS) is the cloud-based service which powers the Energy Analysis features in Vasari and Revit. The integration of GBS and the Autodesk Building Performance Analysis tools provides you a seamless workflow from model creation to energy and carbon results, without needing to leave the authoring environment—results can be viewed within your Vasari/Revit file, or within the Green Building Studio website. Energy and Carbon Analysis can be performed on schematic mass models as well as more detailed models. GBS uses the DOE-2 simulation engine for
calculating the hourly, whole building energy usage of your project..
Author: Marjorie Stein, Project Manager, Building Performance Analysis
With access to Green Building Studio, you can run energy simulations using either a Vasari or Revit conceptual mass model or a more detailed model, and view estimated energy simulation results within your model, or on the GBS website. An alternate workflow allows you to export the gbXML or mass model gbXML and upload directly to the Green Building Studio website where you can view details of the estimated energy analysis results within the website, and modify your project settings there as well. Refer to our previous blog posting, Advanced Energy Analysis with Green Building Studio DOE2 and EnergyPlus support, for more information. Use the simulation results to make decisions that move your project towards sustainable design.
Energy Settings Defaults – Reasonable Energy Results with Minimal Inputs
If a parameter has not been defined in your model, GBS uses a default value in order to generate an energy model with the minimum information needed for a simulation. These intelligent values are appropriate to the building type, size, and location. Refer to Autodesk Green Building Studio WikiHelp, Building Assumptions and Defaults, for more details
Quickly Move Toward Energy Efficient and Sustainable Designs
Once your simulation is finished you can view the energy and carbon results in the Results and Compare window within your model; either the results of one run, or easily compare the results of multiple runs, side-by-side. Detailed results are also available on the GBS website. Based upon the results, revise energy settings and parameters within your model, or within the GBS website, and submit additional analyses for your project as you iterate toward a more energy efficient and sustainable design.
Above – Example of simulation results in Revit and Vasari
Above – Example of simulation runs in Green Building Studio web site
Easily View and Compare Multiple Analyses Results
Green Building Studio uses the concept of a dashboard to allow you to view analyses from multiple projects at the same time. Dashboards let you access, evaluate and compare many different metrics related to carbon and water analysis results. The data can be displayed either graphically, or using a list view. You can organize your projects in different dashboards by location, building type, climate, and other categories. Refer to the GBS WikiHelp Dashboards topic for more information.
What Else Can Green Building Studio Do For You?
Green Building Studio has analyses/simulation capabilities, beyond the Whole Building Energy Analysis, using the DOE-2 simulation engine, to help you move your project toward sustainability:
- Carbon Data: GBS calculates your project’s CO2 emissions and Carbon Neutrality potential, using data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and CARMA (Carbon Monitoring for Action).
- LEED Daylight: Potential LEED Daylight credits are estimated for your project, using the glazing factor requirements.
- Water Use: A summary of your project’s estimated water use, based upon the occupancy density and building type, as well as LEED Water Efficiency credit potential are reported.
- Renewable Energy: GBS calculates your project’s renewable energy potential for a Photovoltaic system and Wind Energy.
- Natural Ventilation Potential is approximated based upon the simulated loads on your building, the operating schedule, and the chosen weather file.
- U.S. EPA Energy Star: GBS calculates the estimated Energy Star score, and associated data, which can be used to benchmark the building design’s total energy-use performance, relative to the U.S. EPA’s Energy Star requirements.
- Weather Data: Having good Weather Data is essential for valid energy analysis of your project. Green Building Studio, Revit, and Vasari access the Autodesk Climate Server database of climate and weather data.
How to Obtain Access to Green Building Studio
Revit's Energy Analysis Feature is only available if you have a GBS Entitlement. Green Building Studio is available as an Entitlement to many Autodesk Products and Suites subscriptions, such as Revit. Contact your reseller for more information. Green Building Studio can be purchased as a stand-alone web service directly through the Green Building Studio e-store. Members of the Education Community can qualify for free access to Green Building Studio. Students and Educators can get their questions answered by clicking on the “Need Help?” link on the Education Community website. Want to try a hands-on tour of GBS? Register for a free, 30-day trial by logging into the Green Building Studio website.
We’d like to hear from you: Have you used the energy analysis features in Revit or Vasari? Is this information helpful? What do you think about adopting these workflows?
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