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More significant reductions in residential primary energy consumption and in space heating in particular, can contribute to achieving climate change and energy efficiency objectives. Project information from demonstration projects is now becoming available for highly energy-efficient renovation concepts.

The goal of this research is to understand how owner-occupants can be persuaded to apply far-reaching energy-saving renovations of single-family houses. To this end, the research examines drivers and barriers of owners to adopt highly energy-efficient renovation concepts. Theory on decision processes in innovation diffusion is used, in order to examine the adoption of integrated concepts to achieve high energy performance. Belgian case studies (different building typologies) were examined. Adoption drivers and barriers perceived by owner-occupants are analysed. This leads to improved understanding of characteristics that can persuade future adopters. Possible measures are discussed to overcome barriers in the introduction phase of innovation diffusion, and are illustrated more in detail with a case study. The research shows that especially expectations of improved comfort provide an opportunity for the market entry of integrated concepts. Owners, architects and contractors could benefit from increased attractiveness, competitiveness, affordability and availability of highly energy-efficient renovations. Holistic approaches (stronger coordination and clustered renovation concepts), higher skill competence (education) and improved communication (actor networks, significant economic incentives) are recommended.

This paper is based on a study of six similar buildings built in Gothenburg, Sweden, in 1971, which were in urgent need of renovation. A life cycle profit analysis shows how four competing concepts were evaluated to find a financially viable renovation concept; additionally, the environmental impacts of these renovation concepts using a life cycle assessment are presented.

Four renovation concepts are compared to find the most appropriate concept, namely, minimalist, code-compliant, low-energy and low-energy plus vertical extension concepts. The methods used for comparison are life cycle profit analysis and life cycle impact assessment; the methods used for data gathering included site visits, interviews, document study, co-benefits study and energy simulation.

The findings show that vertical extension supported the energy-efficient renovation of the buildings and that the combination of low-energy and the vertical extension had the highest return on investment and the lowest environmental impact. The selected concept for renovating the remaining five buildings combined was the low-energy plus vertical extension. Additional benefits from vertical extension include more apartments in central locations for the housing company, a wider variety of apartment layouts and a wider range of tenants. Drawbacks include increased use of infrastructure, green space and common appliances, as well as gentrification.

This study shows how a vertical extension can financially enable an energy-efficient renovation and further lower its environmental impact. Benefits and drawbacks of densification are also highlighted to better understand the implementation of vertically extending a building.

The European Commission and EU member states have prioritised the renovation of the existing housing stock as a means of achieving their energy-efficiency targets. As buildings account for 40% of Europe’s energy consumption and much of this is used in the residential sector a major breakthrough could be realized here. Despite the fact that energy saving targets have been prioritized in EU and national policy programme’s, progress is slow. The actual rate and extent of renovations are by fare not enough to achieve the targets. Although the necessity of energy savings is acknowledged by institutional investors in housing, housing associations, individual homeowners and occupants, it appears to be difficult to get sufficient support for energy efficiency renovations. The current economic situation is an additional barrier preventing large scale investments in energy renovating the housing stock.

This article connects the realisation of energy efficiency goals with the creation of jobs in the EU. The shift from new-build to renovation will have considerable effects on employment in especially the construction industry and the qualifications required by the workforce. Studies show that for every €1 million investment in the existing building stock in the form of energy renovation work, 12 to 17 new jobs could be created. Potentially this could lead to may new jobs. However, there are many uncertainties in these calculations. Are these direct or indirect jobs, what sectors would benefit, are these jobs created within the EU and what would be the net effect on the labour market? Nonetheless these uncertainties, the positive employment effects will prevail. A new and ambitious investment programme in the housing sector could not only improve the energy performance of the sector but create 100.000’s of valuable jobs at a time when these are seriously needed.

The purpose of the study, upon which this paper is based, was to contribute an improved understanding of the vertical extension of buildings, by presenting a development process for its implementation in which the key aspects to consider when planning such extensions are highlighted.

The approach is based on linking the diffusion of innovation together with case study research to stimulate further development in vertically extending buildings. Four cases of vertically extended buildings in Sweden were selected for the study.

The development process highlights seven key areas for decisions when planning a vertical extension. These areas are: opportunities for vertical extension; strategies for implementation; detailed planning process; concept development; evaluation; building permit; and procurement. The development processes and lessons learnt from each case are presented, covering both success and failure.

The research is based on four cases of vertically extended buildings. The findings offer valuable insights into the development process which should provide the research community with an improved understanding of the challenges faced.

The findings will help planners, housing owners, housing developers and facility managers better understand the conditions that favour successful implementation of vertical extensions.

The paper provides the reader with an understanding of the challenges faced in the vertical extension of a building and the means of overcoming them to create a simplified development process.

This paper highlights the importance of user satisfaction in office renovation. A user-focussed renovation approach can enhance user satisfaction in offices and their functional quality while meeting energy performance goals. The purpose of this paper is to investigate users’ needs and the physical and psychological factors affecting user satisfaction, as input to office renovation projects.

The selected articles are collected from Scopus, ScienceDirect and Google Scholar. Searching was limited to the main key terms of office, work environment, and user satisfaction and comfort. The important factors were searched through empirical-based international literature mainly. Based hereupon, a guide will be developed for the analysis and evaluation of user satisfaction in office renovations.

From a comprehensive overview, the findings present ten main factors to increase user satisfaction in office renovation. These are associated with physical and psychological satisfaction and comfort. In addition, the influential factors were categorised into three levels based on needs theories to organise the hierarchy of priorities.

This research adds to the body of knowledge about which factors are important for user satisfaction, based on what previous research has found in that field. This is important to improve the sustainability in use.

User satisfaction is often studied through separate aspects: health and indoor climate vs functionality and productivity. This paper examines overall user satisfaction of workplaces by integrating the perspectives of physical and psychological conditions, and by providing insight into the priority of satisfaction factors.

Existing old building stock needs retrofit of structures and performance upgrading. Retrofit is often neglected, either lacking understanding of maintenance importance or to keep living costs low. Retrofit is inevitable. Depending on a buildings geographical location, condition or expected time of use; demolition of building or increment space is worth considering. This study looks at the economics about which is the best option: renovation and energy efficient upgrading of existing building or replacement of existing building.

Research method is case study. The same case building – size, age, existing performance as well as renovation and new performance – studied at different regions. These are (1) growing city, (2) stable city and (3) shrinking city. Life cycle cost analysis bases on payback periods. The most important input data are the rent and occupancy rate on each area.

In growing cities, both renovation and replacement of existing buildings are feasible options. In other two areas, payback periods of renovations are rather long and acceptable only if building is in own use. Often retrofit is necessary because of the poor condition of the building.

This study looks at the subject only from building owners economical point of view and ties building to its location. Life cycle assessment (energy use and greenhouse gas emissions) has analysed earlier (Nippala and Heljo, 2010).

Analysis gives the most feasible option to different regions.

This study raises the debate on how realistic it is to expect the building stock to meet the EU’s energy saving and greenhouse cut targets.

Decarbonising the housing stock is one of the largest challenges in the built environment today, which is getting the attention not only from policymakers but also from social housing corporations, financial organisations and users. In line with the international Paris-Climate-Change-Conference 2015, Dutch cities and housing associations have embraced this challenge with the ambitions to become carbon neutral in 2050. To reach such goals, both the rate and depth of renovation need to increase. Several technical solutions to eliminate the energy demand in dwelling have been developed and tested. Nevertheless, the intake rate of deep retrofitting is low. Despite recent developments, there are still significant barriers related to financing, lack of information and user acceptance. To address those barriers, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between energy efficiency upgrades and the cost of living.

Focusing on walk-up apartments in the Netherlands, a framework of refurbishment measures that affect the energy efficiency was identified, and their performance was calculated. Furthermore, the rental price adjustment was estimated, taking into account the refurbishment investment and the exploitation cost of the renovated dwellings.

The comparison of the energy use and rental price for the different options demonstrated how the different renovation measures affect the energy cost, the energy use, rent and cost of living. The tenants are more likely to accept the solutions that take into account the total cost of living and sustainability benefits. The study gives a holistic standpoint to the issue of energy upgrades, by quantifying the effect of the potential measures for the whole exploitation period. It has shown the potential of the different interventions to improve the performance and living conditions, without necessarily increasing the total cost of living.

Such results aim at supporting the decision making between the stakeholders, primarily housing associations and tenants.

The importance of the study is that it gives a holistic standpoint to the issue of energy upgrades, by quantifying the effect of the potential measures for the whole exploitation period. The cost, as a key, if not the more most decisive, issue, is put into perspective in relation to the benefit, in order to give a direction to the renovation design and arguments for the stakeholders’ dialogue. The approach of the study goes beyond cost-optimality of measures and investigated the relation between energy upgrades and cost, as a way to evaluate design variation and address the lack of information barrier in renovations. Moreover, it also proves that deep renovation is feasible without increasing in the total cost of living, which is a principal argument to promote renovations.

The purpose of this paper is to promote energy saving measures concurrent with major planned renovation/refurbishment in residential buildings.

The methodology comprises of case studies, in which the influence of various factors is identified on the overall decision making related to building renovation/refurbishment.

The employed operational decision support process enables energy saving opportunities for residential buildings in conjunction with planned major renovations/refurbishments.

The research scope is confined to residential buildings in Sweden and cooperatives with tenants as the owners and governors.

A novel approach to synergistic energy saving and renovation in residential buildings is exhibited.

The paper presents an altered viewpoint of energy renovation means for residential buildings in the built environment.

The paper presents a novel approach for building owners to renovate a building in terms of improved performance, energy efficiency and indoor comfort in combination with planned renovations/refurbishments.

Improving the energy performance of historic buildings has the potential to reduce carbon emissions while protecting built heritage through its continued use. However, implementing energy retrofits in these buildings faces social, economic, and technical barriers. The purpose of this conceptual paper is to present the approach of IEA-SHC Task 59 to address some of these barriers.

Task 59 aims to achieve the lowest possible energy demand for historic buildings. This paper proposes a definition for this concept and identifies three key socio-technical barriers to achieving this goal: the decision-makers’ lack of engagement in the renovation of historic buildings, a lack of support during the design process and limited access to proven retrofit solutions. Two methods – dissemination of best-practice and guidelines – are discussed in this paper as critical approaches for addressing the first two barriers.

An assessment of existing databases indicates a lack of best-practice examples focused specifically on historic buildings and the need for tailored information describing these case studies. Similarly, an initial evaluation of guidelines highlighted the need for process-oriented guidance and its evaluation in practice.

This paper provides a novel definition of lowest possible energy demand for historic buildings that is broadly applicable in both practice and research. Both best-practices and guidelines are intended to be widely disseminated throughout the field.

Energy-efficiency measures have always been important when renovating aging building stock. For property owners, window intervention is a recurring issue. Replacement is common to reduce operational heating energy (OHE) use, something many previous building renovation studies have considered. Maintaining rather than replacing windows has received less attention, especially for multi-residential buildings in a subarctic climate where there is great potential for OHE savings. The objective was to assess the life cycle (LC) climate impact and costs of three window maintenance and replacement options for a 1980s multi-residential building in subarctic Sweden.

The options’ embodied and operational impacts from material production, transportation and space heating were assessed using a life cycle assessment (LCA) focusing on global warming potential (LCA-GWP) and life cycle costing (LCC) with a 60-year reference study period. A sensitivity analysis was used to explore the impact of uncertain parameters on LCA-GWP and LCC outcomes.

Maintaining instead of replacing windows minimized LC climate impact and costs, except under a few specific conditions. The reduced OHE use from window replacement had a larger compensating effect on embodied global warming potential (E-GWP) than investment costs, i.e. replacement was primarily motivated from a LC climate perspective. The LCA-GWP results were more sensitive to changes in some uncertain parameters, while the LCC results were more robust.

The findings highlight the benefits of maintenance over replacement to reduce costs and decarbonize window interventions, challenging property owners’ preference to replace windows and emphasizing the significance of including maintenance activities in future renovation research.