The building sector accounts for almost 40% of total energy use worldwide (Zhang et al. 2018). The United States produces 21% of the world’s total CO₂ gas emissions (Attari et al. 2010) and it is estimated that both residential and commercial buildings together are responsible for about 39% of US greenhouse gas emissions every year (Pang and O’Neill 2018). Energy consumption from buildings is expected to increase by an average of 1.5% each year for the period of 2012–2040, and this rate may double or even triple by 2050 (EIA 2016). The main factor behind this increase in energy consumption in buildings was found to be occupant behavior (Lutzenhiser 1993). Moreover, occupant behavior (e.g., actions or reactions of an individual to adapt to ambient environmental conditions such as temperature, indoor air quality, and sunlight) also constitutes a leading source of uncertainty in estimating the energy consumption of buildings (IEA 2016; Csoknyai et al. 2019; Li et al. 2017; Xie et al. 2019). This project aims to investigate the effect of occupant behavior on reducing energy consumption in buildings and develop models that analyze the impact of occupants’ energy-use behavior on buildings’ energy consumption.

Funding: STO Corporation

Building and construction industry have utilized building performance simulation (BPS) software programs to optimize building design and energy performance. These simulation programs were developed to assist engineers and architects in calculating and analyzing building energy consumption based on actual weather conditions and building design. Despite the tremendous contribution of these BPS algorithms to reduce energy consumption of buildings, there is still a huge gap between actual energy consumption of buildings vs predicted energy consumption from energy simulation models (up to 40%). To address this challenge, this project will focus on accurately measuring the true thermal performance of modern prefab wall panels. The thermal performance measurements tests are performed based on ASTM C1363-19 guideline standards. Our test results will help decision makers improve their building design and energy performance analysis and reduce their operational costs.

Funding: CPWR (Completed in Feb 2023)

“A novel metric evaluated in the context of mobile communication environment will be evaluated and validated, for the first time, in the context of construction site noise and warning signal audibility.” The objective of this project is to develop a more accurate acoustic assessment of construction sites, with an emphasis on comparing traditional methods (i.e., monaural and SPL-based measurements) and a novel method (i.e., binaural measurements), using the measurements of: (1) Noise exposure (2) Audibility of auditory warning signaling devices from workers or equipment, in noisy conditions The results of the study directly support NIOSH’s National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) Construction Strategic Goal #6—to reduce occupational hearing loss in construction through a multifaceted research and outreach effort. Furthermore, this research aligns with CPWR’s special emphasis area to reach high-risk sectors such as small employers, vulnerable workers, and residential and light commercial construction.

This project aims to address the productivity issues and labor shortage construction firms are incorporating Industrialized Construction (IC) and Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) that involve evolving applications of manufacturing methodology and effective practices to improve the productivity in the construction industry. This is primarily achieved through the decoupling of sub-assembly operations from the traditional construction site and fabricating these building components at facilities located off-site. Preplanning utilizing Building Information Technology (BIM) platforms coupled with advanced machinery can amplify the effectiveness of the workforce. The novel methodologies developed through this research are through the rooted in the evolving landscape of industrialized construction.