196
and datasets are still on the horizon and active, and promising research by the LCA
community continues.
Different tools evaluating the same criteria provide different relative advantages
and disadvantages, each with its own internally consistent logic and frames of reference. In order for sustainability analysis to become fully incorporated into design
workflows, interoperability and compatibility between programs are essential
(Kneifel and O’Rear 2018). Initial steps toward this have been taken by some tools,
but overall sustainability analysis requires the combination of many disparate programs and the careful monitoring for errors that may lie in the gaps between them.
In terms of current interoperability between evaluative criteria and tools,
SolidWorks Sustainability and One Click LCA have started to bring LCC into the
dashboard. Beyond that, BIRDS is the only tool that is bringing together all of the
facets of sustainability, as defined by NIST, into one tool (Kneifel and O’Rear
2018). However, it lacks the ability to query user customized design options where
other tools allow for analysis on a specific, unique design.
Another promising step toward interoperability is Rhino.Inside.Revit which
helps to tie different CAD workflows into BIM-based LCA tools. The design consideration of ceiling height, presented in Sect. 9.2.3, could be fully parametric using
a Grasshopper script, which would make the process of testing many ceiling heights
quick and easy from a design standpoint. In using the WBLCA tools, each time a
design parameter is changed, the user must go through and manually generate new
results to the study, even though the material definitions did not change.
This makes the case for a fully integrated tool that provides live real-time feedback on design decisions. As more considerations—including LCA, LCC, operational energy performance, SLCA, and more—are combined into a single user
interface that provides instant feedback with the design process, these tools become
easier, even less time-consuming and less expensive for designers to integrate into
their workflows than they are already.
References
Aktas CB, Bilec MM (2012) Impact of lifetime on US residential building LCA results. Int J Life
Cycle Assess 17:337–349. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367- 011- 0363- x
Athena (2019) About whole-building LCA and embodied carbon an Athena Institute briefing note. Athena Sustainable Materials Institute. http://www.athenasmi.org/wp- content/
uploads/2019/09/About_WBLCA.pdf. Accessed May 2020
Athena (2020) Whole-building LCA guidelines and benchmarking initiative. Athena Sustainable
Materials Institute. http://www.athenasmi.org/wp- content/uploads/2020/02/Athena_WBLCA_
Guidelines_and_Benchmarking_Initiative_2020.pdf. Accessed May 2020
Bionova (2020) One Click LCA Spring 2020 online expert meeting
De Wolf C, Pomponi F, Moncaster A (2017) Measuring embodied carbon dioxide equivalent of
buildings: a review and critique of current industry practice. Energy Build 140:68–80. https://
doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2017.01.075
9 Case Studies
and datasets are still on the horizon and active, and promising research by the LCA
community continues.
Different tools evaluating the same criteria provide different relative advantages
and disadvantages, each with its own internally consistent logic and frames of reference. In order for sustainability analysis to become fully incorporated into design
workflows, interoperability and compatibility between programs are essential
(Kneifel and O’Rear 2018). Initial steps toward this have been taken by some tools,
but overall sustainability analysis requires the combination of many disparate programs and the careful monitoring for errors that may lie in the gaps between them.
In terms of current interoperability between evaluative criteria and tools,
SolidWorks Sustainability and One Click LCA have started to bring LCC into the
dashboard. Beyond that, BIRDS is the only tool that is bringing together all of the
facets of sustainability, as defined by NIST, into one tool (Kneifel and O’Rear
2018). However, it lacks the ability to query user customized design options where
other tools allow for analysis on a specific, unique design.
Another promising step toward interoperability is Rhino.Inside.Revit which
helps to tie different CAD workflows into BIM-based LCA tools. The design consideration of ceiling height, presented in Sect. 9.2.3, could be fully parametric using
a Grasshopper script, which would make the process of testing many ceiling heights
quick and easy from a design standpoint. In using the WBLCA tools, each time a
design parameter is changed, the user must go through and manually generate new
results to the study, even though the material definitions did not change.
This makes the case for a fully integrated tool that provides live real-time feedback on design decisions. As more considerations—including LCA, LCC, operational energy performance, SLCA, and more—are combined into a single user
interface that provides instant feedback with the design process, these tools become
easier, even less time-consuming and less expensive for designers to integrate into
their workflows than they are already.
References
Aktas CB, Bilec MM (2012) Impact of lifetime on US residential building LCA results. Int J Life
Cycle Assess 17:337–349. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367- 011- 0363- x
Athena (2019) About whole-building LCA and embodied carbon an Athena Institute briefing note. Athena Sustainable Materials Institute. http://www.athenasmi.org/wp- content/
uploads/2019/09/About_WBLCA.pdf. Accessed May 2020
Athena (2020) Whole-building LCA guidelines and benchmarking initiative. Athena Sustainable
Materials Institute. http://www.athenasmi.org/wp- content/uploads/2020/02/Athena_WBLCA_
Guidelines_and_Benchmarking_Initiative_2020.pdf. Accessed May 2020
Bionova (2020) One Click LCA Spring 2020 online expert meeting
De Wolf C, Pomponi F, Moncaster A (2017) Measuring embodied carbon dioxide equivalent of
buildings: a review and critique of current industry practice. Energy Build 140:68–80. https://
doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2017.01.075
9 Case Studies