Effective energy management during a building's life cycle

Abstract

The subjects of energy crisis and environmental degradation have been attracting attentions from both academic and construction industry practice throughout the world. In the process of meeting the demand of fast economic development particularly in developing countries or regions, the sustainability of the generic energy resources such as fossil-based fuel oil and coal is under the threat of being exhausted. On the other hand, energy consumption has direct relation to environmental degradation. Evidence has indicated that global environmental problems are closely associated with the level and methods of energy consumption. The ever-increasing waste products due to inefficient energy consumption are causing globally environmental problems such as urban air pollution and greenhouse effects. Thus implementing energy efficient use can not only reduce the energy consumption but also mitigate the adverse environmental impact from the consumption. Construction industry has been traditionally seen as a major energy consumer and environmental polluter. It is considered that the industry is able to contribute to the effective energy use and better environment through proper management. Energy consumption happens during a building's whole life cycle, from the exploitation and manufacturing of building materials to the demolition of the building. There are many factors affecting the efficiency of using energy during the life cycle of a building, and these factors appear at different stages and affect energy use in different ways. Therefore, it is important to investigate management methods for improving the efficiency of using energy from the perspective of a building's life cycle. Nevertheless, it appears that little research has been done in investigating life cycle energy management in the building industry. The major works of this study include examining various energy management approaches developed previously, investigating the factors that affect the efficiency of energy use across a building's life cycle, investigating the factors affecting the efficiency of practicing energy management in building industry, identifying the existing weak areas in managing energy use during a building's life cycle, and formulating management solutions for enabling the efficient use of energy. The methodology of life cycle analysis (LCA) is adopted in conducting the analysis. Detailed surveys have been conducted for collecting research data and support the analysis. Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) is employed for helping conduct data analysis, including the identification of the major factors affecting energy management. Interview surveys are used for testing the applicability of the proposed energy management methods. An alternative mathematical model is built up to forecast the potential value of applying these methods. Data used for analysis is focused on the practice in the building industry of Mainland China. The Chinese building industry has been consuming substantial amount of energy but with low efficiency. The building industry of Mainland China will continue to be a major industry in the future. The improvement of energy management in the building industry of Mainland China is considered significant.