This article is part of BD+C's special five-part Technology Report 2014: Top tech tools and trends for AEC professionals.
For more than a decade, the U.S. Department of Energy has made its EnergyPlus energy analysis and thermal load simulation program available for free to Building Teams.
Using EnergyPlus, AEC professionals can model heating, cooling, lighting, ventilation, and other energy flows, as well as water consumption, within a building design.
But without a major rewrite of the program since its creation, using EnergyPlus could exhibit slow performance and occasionally inaccurate analysis results.
The programming language it was originally written in, Fortran, simply could not keep up with advances in the hardware and software computing environment. FORTRAN is a language aimed at scientific programs to be run by scientists for days and weeks on supercomputers, not by building designers running multiple iterations of a design idea in a matter of a few hours.
Because it wasn't well integrated with common architectural design software, EnergyPlus never gained widespread adoption by architects working in the conceptual stage of a project.
At Greenbuild 2013, Autodesk (working pro bono) turned over brand new engine source code to the DOE to create a completely rewritten EnergyPlus for a forthcoming version. The new code will be made available under the DOE’s open source license.
Autodesk’s software engineers translated EnergyPlus—more than 600,000 lines of code—to C++, a modern, object-oriented language that is better supported on mass-market hardware and software platforms.
As a result, a larger ecosystem of developers and vendors will be able to contribute updates to the code in order to improve performance and decrease the time required to run energy model simulations.
The forthcoming version will also work better with BIM applications, auditing tools, and energy dashboards after it is released and developers are able to work on improved integrations.
For more, visit: http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/buildings/energyplus.
Related Stories
| Sep 23, 2011
ABI turns positive after four monthly declines
On the heels of a period of weakness in design activity, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) took a sudden upturn in August.
| Sep 23, 2011
Under 40 Leadership Summit
Building Design+Construction’s Under 40 Leadership Summit takes place October 26-28, 2011 Hotel at the Monteleone in New Orleans. Discounted hotel rate deadline: October 2, 2011.
| Sep 20, 2011
Jeanne Gang wins MacArthur Fellowship
Jeanne Gang, a 2011 MacArthur Fellowship winner described by the foundation as "an architect challenging the aesthetic and technical possibilities of the art form in a wide range of structures."
| Sep 20, 2011
Francis Cauffman wins two IDA design awards
The PA/NJ/DE Chapter of the International Interior Design Association (IIDA) has presented the Francis Cauffman architecture firm with two awards: the Best Interior Design of 2011 for the W. L. Gore offices in Elkton, MD, and the President’s Choice Award for St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center in Paterson, NJ.
| Sep 20, 2011
PPG, Pleotint to co-market environmentally adaptive glazing technology with low-e glass
Laminated between two lites of glass, SRT interlayer may be used monolithically or within an insulating glass unit.
| Sep 19, 2011
Portland team hired as LEED and commissioning consultants for $5.5B downtown sustainable project in Qatar
The $5.5 billion sustainable downtown regeneration project underway by Msheireb Properties will transform a 76 acres site at the centre of Doha, Qatar’s capital city, recreating a way of living that is rooted in Qatari culture, attracting residents back to the city center and reversing the trend for decentralization.
| Sep 16, 2011
Chicago Architecture Foundation partners with seven renowned architects to re-imagine Chicago neighborhoods
Design on the Edge presents plans created by seven teams of nine Chicago-based architects to reimagine seven of the city’s neighborhoods to encourage street life, retail districts and dense housing around the existing “L” transit system.
| Sep 14, 2011
USGBC L.A. Chapter's Green Gala features Jason McLennan as keynote speaker
The Los Angeles Chapter of the nonprofit USGBC will launch its Sustainable Innovation Awards this year during the chapter's 7th Annual Green Gala on Thursday, November 3.
| Sep 14, 2011
Lend Lease’s role in 9/11 Memorial & Museum
Lend Lease is honored to be the general contractor for the National September 11 Memorial & Museum project at the World Trade Center site in New York City.
| Sep 14, 2011
Thornton Tomasetti’s Poon named to the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat’s Board of Trustees
During his 30-plus years of experience, Poon has been responsible for the design and construction of super high-rise structures, mixed-used buildings, hotels, airports, arenas and residential buildings worldwide.
