Dr Michelle Agha-Hossein Sustainability Engineer

Post Occupancy Evaluation (POE)

What is POE? Techniques and Methods The Benefits of POE Issues and pitfalls to be aware of for a

successful POE campaign

"... the process of evaluating buildings in a systematic and rigorous manner after they have

been built and occupied for some time“ Preiser et al. (1988)

Post Occupancy : evaluate project success Pre- and Post-Project: set benchmarks

(baselines) Regular intervals: identify potential areas for

improvements.

Which technique to use? It depends on the:

Complexity and size of the project Budget and time available Metrics set at the design stage

Specific and clear Measurable Achievable Realistic Timely

Examples: Economic: capital cost, operational cost Environmental: electricity, fossil fuels, water,

waste, emissions Social: occupant satisfaction, IEQ factors

• AUDE (Association of University Directors of Estates) guide for existing available POE methods, for example: Design Quality Indicators BUS Survey CIBSE TM22: Energy Assessment and

Reporting Methodology

• BREEAM In-Use

To help to achieve BREEAM credits for minimum Excellent rating

To provide feedback on how buildings perform To help building operators to manage their

building effectively To provide the end users the opportunity to

express their views To be fed back into the design brief for the

future projects To help to reduce the “performance gap”

• Planning for POE is key Will you get an independent view?

• Try to avoid POE being too “energy focussed” How will you information be fed back to client

• Need some realistic prediction of operational energy performance

• Ideally, should break down into different end uses – e.g. lighting, heating, etc.

• Metering, metering, metering • Maximising occupant survey response rate is key

(e.g. 50-66%)

Michelle.agha-hossein@bsria.co.uk @MichelleAH99