Free Sketch Up energy & CO2 plug-in...!?

[PB]

How green is your building?

We're very excited to announce that Google SketchUp users now have greater access to free building performance simulation tools. ( http://www.iesve.com/content/ ) IES (Integrated Environmental Solutions) has just released a free plugin, the ( http://www.iesve.com/content/default.asp?page=s156 ) IES VE SketchUp plugin (available for Windows only) that determines your building's energy use and carbon dioxide emissions. The plugin works within Google SketchUp 6 and connects with IES's analysis tools: VE-Ware (free), VE-Toolkits and the full Virtual Environment. ( http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/2008/08/see-your-buildings-energy-performance.html ) Keep reading...

Any good? Does it represent real world building performance?

And more to the point,.........where is AC12 with regards to integrated / inter-operable building energy/CO2 assessment?

[Anonymous]

how about the software of the solutions in energy analysis in graphisoft's home page?


http://www.graphisoft.com/products/archicad/solutions/energize9_whitepaper.html#lp5

can they calculate the data that you need?

[PB]

Yes, sorry, I should have been a little clearer & more specific with my question, rather than simply typing out my concluding thought!

Having read the Page you suggest on the Graphisoft website, and trawled through Archi-Talk, I was trying to garner some opinions from current users of AC that are applying these software solutions to their projects: The decision to finally post was spurred by the SketchUp email!

- The lengthy post "Autodesk acquires Ecotect!" makes for depressing reading. The previous time I looked at Ecotect I almost purchased it: However, its new price, new owners, and (perhaps uncertain?) future raise a host of questions that were in part asked in the post "ArchiCad and Building Performance Simulation" (without much comment in reply)...

- Any users of ArchiPHYSIK care to share their experiences? Again, a relatively expensive program, ........but how is it working for users outside the core north european countries?

- Green Building Studio: Again, any user experience to be shared, and how relavant is it at the conceptual stage?

- etc.

Whilst, like most current architectural practitioners, I have an ongoing desire to design good buildings, the architectural conception has to date been more by intuition & experience than scientific analysis. However, I currently have a number of projects in very different climates, and I would like to ensure that my knowledge/assumptions/presumptions are valid, and that the proposed solutions are therefore appropriate.

Prior beginning an upto date research into the options, I had anticipated incorporating Ecotect into my workflow to give quick, accurate, visual design feedback, but would appreciate hearing the opinions of those currently using it (especially since the purchase by Autodesk...).

I will also ask the question to Zigurds on his post.

Any advise, experience, pointers in this direction would be most appreciated, and thank you Angus for replying to my vague and fairly directionless post!