Balancing preservation and energy efficiency in building stocks

Abstract

Purpose Energy use in buildings needs to be reduced to meet political goals; however, reducing energy use can conflict with heritage preservation objectives. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate a method that combines quantitative and qualitative analyses of the potential of energy savings in an historic building stock. Specifically, this study examines how requirements of historic building preservation affect the energy saving potential on a building stock level. Design/methodology/approach Using the World Heritage Town of Visby, Sweden as a case study, this paper illustrates a step-by-step method as a basis for implementing energy savings techniques in an historic building stock. The method contains the following steps: categorisation of a building stock, definition of restriction levels for energy renovation scenarios and life cycle costs optimisation of energy measures in archetype buildings representing the building stock. Finally, this study analyses how different energy renovation strategies will impact heritage values and energy saving potentials for different categories of buildings. Findings The outcome of the study is twofold: first, the method has been tested and proven useful and second, the results from the application of the method have been used to formulate differentiated energy renovation strategies for the case study. Originality/value The study shows that it is possible to integrate techno-economic analysis with assessment of heritage values in a given building stock in order to facilitate a strategic discussion balancing policies and targets for energy savings with policies for the preservation of heritage values. The findings will contribute to sounder policy development and planning for historic building stocks.

Classification of Heritage Residential Building Stock and Defining Sustainable Retrofitting Scenarios in Khedivial Cairo

“…On the one hand, it is distinct from previous work that did not include construction types and materials such as [39], and the work of [35][36][37] did not refer to sustainable retrofitting scenarios suitable for heritage protection levels in reference buildings. On the other hand, from a heritage point of view, this work is distinct from previous work of [36][37][38]50] that assess the impact or risk levels of proposed retrofitting scenarios on the heritage significance. On the contrary, this present work determines firstly possible interventions in each heritage significance grade to ensure preserving cultural values.…”

“…The selection of reference buildings is based on average size and volume. This method has been applied in Visby Sweden [38].…”

“…This classification was carried out according to steps listed below that mainly relied on the physical characteristics of the buildings. This approach inspired the classification method used in the European project EFFESUS in Visby city and by [35,36,38,52,68,69]. The six steps are explained in detail as follows:…”

Towards Differentiated Energy Renovation Strategies for Heritage-Designated Multifamily Building Stocks

“…The archetype buildings represented different parts of the building stock, both single family buildings as well as multifamily buildings. These archetypes were used for optimising life cycle costs and energy use in order to create a knowledge base for developing differentiated energy strategies for the city [13]. In Italy, a score-driven method aimed at improved energy planning processes for historic building stocks has been developed.…”

Energy Retrofit in European Building Portfolios: A Review of Five Key Aspects

“…In the l'Eixample district in Valencia (Spain), a stock of 588 multi-story listed buildings was analyzed in [71] to find the best retrofitting measures enhancing the thermal behavior of the stock, without compromising its historical nature. Another example can be found in [58] where the aim is to integrate technical and economic analysis with cultural heritage preservation aspects.…”