S-IMPLER:Solid Wall Innovative Insulation and Monitoring Processes using Lean Energy Efficient Retrofit

The project aims to investigate the retrofit of solid wall housing, to achieve a 60% reduction in monitored energy costs, with less disruption, at least 10% faster, without reductions in quality & safety. The research is a joint activity between the Northern Ireland Housing Executive (NIHE), Building Research Establishment (BRE), Carillion Energy Services, Leeds Beckett University, Tensor, VRM and Collaborative Improvement Limited. S-IMPLER is in receipt of funding from the Innovate UK (former Technology Strategy Board –TSB).

The overall project objectives are to:

Develop retrofit solutions for seven NIHE solid walled homes that can make a 60% reduction in monitored energy costs for the same capital cost as Northern Ireland Building Regulations
Deliver the retrofit process 10% faster with less disruption but without reductions in quality and safety.
Develop innovation in surveying and specification including a surveying tool and a Building Information Modelling tool to allow client modelling of different options with costs and benefits.
Develop a whole house monitoring system to assess real energy performance before and after energy monitoring
Undertake forensic performance analysis of the homes before and after improvements have been made.
The University of Huddersfield is a partner in this collaborative research project, focussing on the delivery of BIM implementation for retrofit of No Fines Concrete [NFC] solid wall housing.

Building Information modelling offers potential process and delivery improvements throughout the lifecycle of built assets. However, there is limited research in the use of BIM for energy efficiency in housing retrofits. The UK has over 300,000 solid wall homes with very poor energy efficiency. A BIM based solution for the retrofit of solid wall housing using lean and collaborative improvement techniques will offer a cost effective, comprehensive solution that is less disruptive, reduces waste and increases accuracy, leading to high quality outcomes. The Huddersfield team will develop a BIM for Retrofit Protocol supporting development of a 'what if' scenarios for housing retrofits that deliver high efficiency thermal improvements, aiming to reduce costs and disruption for users, addressing the complexity of NFC solid wall housing.

BIM is therefore utilised for predictive and evaluative energy analysis, 3D modelling,

4D BIM scheduling and 5D BIM cost analysis. The what-if retrofit matrix will deliver an integrated solution that deals with the issues of high energy consumption due to poor thermal performance; reductions in the carbon footprint; internal mould and condensation issues, using constructive solutions that offer reduced disruption to the housing occupier.