In May 2018, Baumann Consulting hosted an event with the Chicago Chapter of IBPSA-USA (CHIBPSA) where both Chicago-area building simulation community members and students from the Eindhoven Technical University in the Netherlands were able to join a morning of networking while discussing innovative thermal comfort solutions. Furthermore, presentations were given by Arjan Kraakman and Remco van Woensel, both graduate students of the Building Physics & Services department of the Eindhoven University of Technology. Arjan and Remco presented their research on the effects of spatial transitions on thermal comfort perception in office environments, and SPONG3D, an adaptive 3D-printed façade system for seasonal thermal comfort optimization.
Learning Objectives included:
- How the Spong3D facade system works
- How a system like Spong3D can be modeled using BPS software
- The energy savings potential of Spong3D in different climates
- The potential of spatial transition research on thermal comfort of occupants
- The potential of spatial transition research on energy saving and using renewable energy sources
Baumann Consulting was very impressed by the organization and maturity of the Eindhoven Technical University scholars. They all appeared to be highly dedicated to building a sustainable environment and exchanging ideas through their yearly global excursions to further their knowledge. Baumann Consulting was very happy to host the scholars and provide some of our insights as they transition from theory to practical work experience. The event which transformed into an open discussion after the webinar part (which had at its peak 70 attendees) was well received and everyone left feeling fulfilled and invigorated. The Baumann Chicago team will definitely look to host such an event again in the near future, as research in this field is in line with Baumann’s mission statement “… to elevate high-performance buildings to become the standard of our industry.”
The study association Mollier of the Master’s program Building Physics & Services at the Eindhoven Technical University in the Netherlands reached out to Baumann Consulting to support and participate in their study trip. During the study trip, a group of 20 master students travels to a country that varies greatly in climate and building methods compared to the Netherlands. In 2018, companies and universities have been visited with the aim to achieve knowledge exchange between the Netherlands and the United States of America in the field of building physics and building service technology. Students presented Dutch research based on the analysis of average and high-performance buildings with innovative building physics and installation technology in the USA.
