ENERGY MODELING AT EACH DESIGN PHASE: STRATEGIES TO MINIMIZE DESIGN ENERGY USE

This research paper by RMI outlines strategies for integrating energy modeling throughout the four main phases of building design—concept, schematic design, design development, and construction documentation—to move beyond simple code compliance and actively minimize energy use.

• Energy modeling is frequently misused as a mere accounting or code compliance tool for LEED points, which causes design teams to overlook significant opportunities to optimize energy consumption and reduce life cycle costs.
• An integrated design process for low-energy buildings should follow a specific chronological order: defining needs, identifying appropriate measures, reducing loads via passive design, planning system layouts, selecting efficient technology, optimizing operation, seeking synergies, and exploring alternative power.
• In the concept phase, modelers should establish a "theoretical minimum" energy use—the lowest technically possible energy use using current technology—to shift the design conversation from incremental improvements to fundamental design challenges.
• During the schematic design (SD) phase, energy modelers should transition from providing only energy outputs to providing economic outputs using Life Cycle Cost Analysis (LCCA). Metrics such as Net Present Value (NPV), Return on Investment (ROI), and Internal Rate of Return (IRR) are more meaningful to decision-makers than energy units.
• Analyzing energy efficiency as 'packages of measures' rather than isolated components is essential for economic justification, as the capital cost of high-performance elements (like windows) can be offset by the ability to downsize or eliminate mechanical equipment.
• In the design development (DD) phase, the focus shifts to defending against value engineering, optimizing control strategies, and ensuring thermal comfort and indoor air quality criteria are met.
• The construction documentation (CD) phase should prioritize the detailed documentation of all model inputs and assumptions to facilitate future measurement and verification or LEED reviews.

APA

Tupper, K., & Fluhrer, C. (n.d.). ENERGY MODELING AT EACH DESIGN PHASE: STRATEGIES TO MINIMIZE DESIGN ENERGY USE. RMI. https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_2010-27_EnergyModelingDesignPhase.pdf

Chicago

Tupper, Kendra, and Caroline Fluhrer. ENERGY MODELING AT EACH DESIGN PHASE: STRATEGIES TO MINIMIZE DESIGN ENERGY USE. RMI, n.d. https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_2010-27_EnergyModelingDesignPhase.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Tupper |first1=Kendra |last2=Fluhrer |first2=Caroline |title=ENERGY MODELING AT EACH DESIGN PHASE: STRATEGIES TO MINIMIZE DESIGN ENERGY USE |publisher=RMI |url=https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_2010-27_EnergyModelingDesignPhase.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{tupperndenergy, author = {Tupper, Kendra and Fluhrer, Caroline}, title = {{ENERGY MODELING AT EACH DESIGN PHASE: STRATEGIES TO MINIMIZE DESIGN ENERGY USE}}, institution = {RMI}, url = {https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_2010-27_EnergyModelingDesignPhase.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }