Built environment quality and sustainability

Research focus

The Peer review has evaluated this group as Excellent

The Research Unit embraces two long-established research and teaching lines dealing with the characteristic features of the project and design process for existent buildings, and the environmental- and energy-aware general building process respectively. These two research lines merge within the RU to create an approach to design in the built environment aimed at preserving environmental and built resources, using energy resources in the best and most rational way, and minimizing pollution; such a vision lies at the core of the latest notions in architecture, the building process and the responsibilities of those involved. The high environmental impact of the construction industry and the building process in general has been widely proven; the re-use and preservation of existing buildings has been acknowledged worldwide as one of the main sustainable strategies for the building sector; therefore, the presence of both research lines within the same Unit is appropriate to the topicality of current architectural problems, which pose questions challenging both methodological and technical innovations in the building process. The Research Unit can rely on a rich experience in the fields of both the re-use of built resources and rehabilitation projects, as well as that of environmental and energy-aware architectural design. The more long-standing members of the Unit have been successfully working for over thirty years on these topics, contributing to important and acknowledged innovations – both at the theoretical and operational levels - in both fields: defining adequate outlines and procedural rulings – that have become operational standards * - for the process of existing built resources projects, and defining and testing evaluation and design methods to improve interactions between buildings and their environment, comfort conditions, energy-saving building processes etc. In both cases, critical points and failures in current processes have been identified, thus further focusing specified research topics; in both cases, the studies conducted resulted in a rich reward of publications, international and national consultancies, congress activities and strong educational commitment. The main RU focus - its specific mission - is the continuous updating of methodological and operational tools to meet the ever-changing needs of the projects process within the built environment, and aimed at the sustainable and rational use of environmental, energy and built resources. This notion relies upon a wider vision of architecture as a systemic activity. The specific research topics have been identified by means of careful analysis of the current process, which has underpinned its main critical points. They are: Multiple-criteria Building Performance analysis and assessment and Post- Occupancy Evaluation – methods and tools for the description, analysis and assessment of building performances (esp. safety, comfort and use adequacy), at the single building and small urban level and in different phases of the design 56 and construction process; follow-up and investigation of environmental effects of design solutions, for different scales of design. Methods and tools for pre-project and pre-design activities – strategic and design briefing, evaluation of users’ and client’s needs; criteria for the design output assessment. Methods and tools for compatibility and durability assessment of “sustainable” building components and materials, according to their use condition. Design methods and tools to simulate/evaluate environmental performances (thermal and lighting) at the building and micro-urban levels. (* The UNI Commission, directed by Prof. Di Battista, has developed a set of standards dedicated to the design process of building maintenance, rehabilitation and re-use: Uni Standard 11150:2005; UNI 11150/1; UNI 11150/2; UNI 11150/3; UNI 11150/4).

Departments

Dipartimento di Scienza e Tecnologie dell'Ambiente Costruito (BEST)

Professors

Full Professors
Valerio Di Battista
Gianni Scudo
Associate Professors
Carlotta Fontana
Paolo Gasparoli
Clara Golinelli
Assistant Professors
Maria Fianchini
Alessandro Rogora
Paolo Talso