The influence of occupant behaviour on building performance was explored by psychologists and specialists in building use and adaptation at the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers’ (CIBSE) recent Building Performance Conference and Exhibition in London.
Rhiannon Cocoran, Professor of Psychology at the University of Liverpool, discussed how buildings can be adapted to encourage occupants to act in a more ecologically sound way, and ‘the influence of human preference for immediate rather than long-term gain on behaviour in buildings’. Those in pleasant environments were more likely to perform socially beneficial tasks such as recycling. The Professor’s presentation formed part of a session on how the UK building stock can be adapted to climate change. Another speaker, Ann Marie Aguilar of Arup, focussed on meeting the increasing needs of older people and the disabled by considering how they actually use buildings, and making small changes to enhance their wellbeing and quality of life.
Alexi Marmot of Alexi Marmot Associates, Professor of Facility and Environment Management in the Bartlett School of Graduate Studies at University College London, noted the direct link between our satisfaction with our work environment and our jobs, and highlighted how occupant behaviour drives building management, citing the demand for air- conditioning, regardless of its actual effectiveness. She also argued that while we only use a small percentage of total office space productively, ‘re-designing the working week around usage patterns is often too psychologically difficult to achieve’.
The session on changes to UK and EU building-related legislation featured talks on Building Regulations in the UK and likely changes to Part L in England, and the requirements of the F-Gas Directive, presented by Mike Nankivell of the Air Conditioning and Refrigerant Training Board (ACRIB). Nina Reid, director of Responsible Property investment at M&G Real Estate, outlined the forthcoming legislation on minimum energy efficiency standards, and Tahsina Khan of the Industrial and Commercial Boilers Association, reviewed the Energy Related Products Framework, noting that energy efficiency standards and labelling for smart building systems were currently being studied by the European Commission.
The afternoon sessions featured presentations of recent Innovate UK-funded research, with lively debate between the audience and speakers on the evaluation of building performance. Matt Colmer of Innovate UK asked ‘Why don’t buildings perform in real life as they do on paper?’ Other speakers outlined the challenges facing designers in trying to meet this challenge, and achieve designs which meet the design energy performance expectations.
