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Thermal Comfort Modelling

Everything you need to know...

About obtaining a Thermal Comfort Model for your project

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Commercial Capability Statement

The benefits of using Thermal Comfort Analysis. Using thermal analysis reveals the behavioural properties of products and designs under thermal load, stress or velocity in order for you to make informed decisions. Based on the simulation results, you should then be able to ensure better efficiency, performance, and/or reliability in your final design iteration.

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THERMAL COMFORT EXPLAINED

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Modelling

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Requirements

What do you need?

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COST & TIME

Find out how much and how long

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Thermal Comfort Modelling explained

What is meant by thermal comfort? Put simply, it is the comfortable condition where a person is not feeling too hot or too cold. Thermal comfort is important for health and well-being, as well as productivity. A lack of thermal comfort causes stress among building occupants.

Thermal control helps keep the occupants of a building more comfortable by moderating the temperatures of the interior surfaces of the building and reducing drafts. Additionally, it reduces the energy consumption of a building for heating and cooling to a fraction of what it would otherwise be.

Modelling

Why is Thermal Comfort Modelling important?

Understanding thermal comfort is important to architecture, since it not only lays the foundation for building design, but also affects the field of sustainable design.

Feeling comfortable in an interior space directly impacts people’s mood. In office buildings, working in optimal conditions enables us to think and work better, and thermal comfort contributes not only to well-being but even to productivity. Eliminating potential health hazards is also a very important aspect of maintaining ideal thermal comfort.

What influences Thermal Modelling in buildings?

Thermal comfort is a cumulative effect resulting from a series of environmental and personal factors.

Environmental factors include:

Air temperature — The air contact temperature measured by the dry bulb temperature (DBT)
Air velocity (AV) — The air contact velocity measured in m/s
Radiant temperature (RT) — The temperature of a person’s surroundings; generally expressed as mean radiant temperature (MRT) which is a weighted average of the temperature of the surfaces surrounding a person and any strong mono-directional radiation, such as solar radiation
Water vapour pressure in ambient air (Pa)

Personal factors:

Clothing insulation
Metabolic heat

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Certified Energy's Commercial Capability Statement

Requirements

When is a Thermal Comfort Model needed?

There are many uses where being able to calculate thermal comfort is important. Here are some typical uses of thermal comfort in a design project:

The project has a natural ventilation component and the envelope needs to be designed to maximise the frequency of comfortable conditions
The project includes zones with large amounts of glazing and it's important to see how comfortable occupants near that glazing are likely to be
The project is working towards a green rating or compliance outcome relating to comfort and early tests of designs need to be carried out to see whether it's on track to achieve the required performance.

Cost & Time Commitments

Due to the processes involved in carrying out this assessment and the scale and complexity of projects typically associated with a Thermal Comfort Modelling, costing will vary.

As for the time frame expected to achieve a Thermal Comfort Model, it can also vary greatly depending on the scale of the project.

To find out the exact price and time frame for completion of a Thermal Comfort Model, we highly recommend contacting us and sending in your architectural plans and all relevant documents. We will aim to send you a quote within the same business day.

Thermal Comfort In Sustainable Design

Sustainable Building Design: The Role Of Thermal Comfort Modelling

A modern, eco-friendly building with green spaces

Thermal comfort modelling is a sophisticated method used to predict and optimise the thermal environment within buildings. It involves the analysis of various factors such as interior temperatures, air flow, and surface conditions to ensure a comfortable indoor climate for occupants. By integrating data on human thermal comfort preferences and environmental conditions, thermal comfort models provide a comprehensive understanding of how different variables interact to affect indoor comfort levels.

This modelling is essential for designing HVAC systems that not only maintain desired thermal conditions but also operate efficiently. It helps in identifying areas within a building that may experience thermal discomfort and provides insights on how to address these issues through design modifications or system adjustments.

Creating a comfortable indoor environment is crucial for occupant wellbeing and productivity. Thermal discomfort can lead to dissatisfaction, reduced productivity, and even health issues. Therefore, ensuring thermal comfort is a key consideration in sustainable building design.

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