GREEN BLOG

Post Occupancy - Designers spend so much time generating drawings, why can't they be used after the buildings are complete?

POSTED NOVEMBER 18, 2010

I was talking with a senior person from Autodesk
(http://www.autodesk.com),the makers of the ubiquitous AutoCAD program, about the future of the design profession. Most of todays buildings, structures, bridges, and products are drawn with their software, so imagine the potential influence their interface could have on us in our design decisions. Our conversation began by talking about using mobile devices, but quickly moving into what happens to the CAD files after the building is built.

In reality, nothing happens. The files are archived and saved for legal and liability reasons.
Hundreds of manhours are spent to create a model of the buildings for the construction, mapping out the circulatory, respiration and skeletal systems of the finished structure. With a little foresight, these drawings could be used for the time after construction is complete, known as Post-Occupany.

The real impact of a building occurs in this post occupancy period. Operating the lights, heating, computers, outlets, and faucets hold the true environmental impact. Over 85% of the environmental impact of a building occurs post occupancy. The more information and measurements we have, the better we can operate our buildings.

For decades, architects and developers have used surveys, called "Post Occupancy" evaluations, to determine how the finished building is used and enjoyed. With Green Buildings, such evaluations have helped determine the success of sustainability features, such as daylighting, energy management and thermal comfort(http://www.eco-structure.com/green-building/sustainable-proof.aspx).

Post-occ evaluations are vital to developing a high-performance building and may soon be required as part of certain building codes. Just read through California's new CalGreen code
(http://www.bsc.ca.gov/CALGreen/)to get a glimpse of the energy efficient future of every building. Despite these advances, our detailed CAD drawings sit unused in a drawer.

Imagine the possibilities of taking all of that data and making it available to the public. Ubiquitous and powerful mobile devices, all armed with cameras, GPS and internet connectivity, could overlay our CAD data onto the real world. Your iPhone could "see" through walls and show you where the studs are, where the plumbing is running and more. Repairs and additions could be simplified and opportunities to improve efficiency would emerge. In addition, a smart app could fetch the local planning code information and show you the virtual boundaries of a future addition.
Part of the step towards this future can be seen in Autodesk's new AutoCAD WS software for the iPad(http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/pc/index?siteID=123112&id=15697418)
allowing you to open, markup and make minor edits to your CAD drawings onsite. I expect it won't take long for a clever Facilities Manager to carry around a copy of the CAD drawings on his iPad or iPhone while inspecting the finished building.

Lastly, I am particularly thrilled that Autodesk has finally (re)released AutoCAD for the Mac
(http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/pc/index?siteID=123112&id=15421056).You can download a free trial here(http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/pc/index?siteID=123112&id=15421056).

- Eric Corey Freed (http://www.organicarchitect.com) is an architect and author of four books, including "Green$ense for the Home" (http://www.greensensebook.com).

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