Development of a sustainability assessment method for buildings – the OPEN HOUSE case

Abstract

Purpose The paper aims to present the core part of the research work done within the FP7 OPEN HOUSE project, aiming to merge existing methodologies for sustainability assessment of buildings towards a common view, applicable as an open access assessment method across European Union (EU). One of the principle tasks was to evaluate the applicability of proposed indicators in EU countries with different legal frameworks, climate conditions, status and condition of the building stock and construction tradition. Design/methodology/approach To reach the goal, it had to be established first whether the pre-selected indicators suit the purpose in countries different from each other regarding various influential factors. A questionnaire survey based on close-ended quantitative thematic questions was performed to evaluate the acceptability and relevance of each indicator in national contexts, thus defining the path for the final protocol of selection criteria for the OPEN HOUSE method. Findings The responses enabled and justified necessary minor corrections and regrouping to define the full (56 indicators) and core (30 indicators) indicator sets, demonstrating that the system is applicable in EU countries. This task made ground for finalisation of the OPEN HOUSE method: definition of evaluation procedures and sustainability performance levels and testing of the approach on demo cases. Originality/value This paper shows how the research team tackled the problem of limited use of building sustainability assessment methods due to specific boundary conditions by determining a widely applicable set of categories and related indicators based upon an extensive analysis of existing assessment methods, standardisation development, formal guidelines and strategic (inter)national frameworks.

Sürdürülebilir bina yenilemeye ilişkin maliyet etkin tasarım karar modeli

“…Bu nedenle, araştırmacılar tarafından kullanımı kolay değerlendirme araçları geliştirilmesi gerektiği belirtilmektedir [12]. Bu doğrultuda çalışmalar, var olan araçların karmaşık olduğunu belirterek, tasarım ekibinin uygulayabileceği, kullanıcı dostu, şeffaf, sonuçların güvenilirliğini ve karşılaştırılabilirliğini sağlayabilen sistemlerin geliştirilmesi ihtiyacına vurgu yapmaktadır [13,14]. Son olarak, mevcut sistemler özellikle sürdürülebilirliğin çevresel boyutuna yönelik ölçütlere sahip olmaları nedeniyle eleştirilmektedir.…”

Identifying the Most Significant Factors Affecting Urban Housing Sustainability and Their Scales/Sectors of Influence: A Systematic Review of the Recent Literature

“…According to Mateus and Bragança (2011), developing and using sustainability measurement techniques and building benchmarking are among the possible approaches to reach a more sustainable built environment [14]. Consequently, sustainability assessment of houses can play a major role in the sustainable development of cities, and to do so there should be a collection of indicators [15]. This is why there has been an enlarged concern about developing and utilizing sustainability indicators for assessing the influences of housing development projects [16].…”