A Comparative Study Of Two Building Performance Simulation Tools Between Ecotect And Designbuilder

ECOTECT is comprehensive simulation software developed for architects, the software have a comprehensive functions, convenient operation and intuitive calculation results. But the accuracy about ECOTECT’s simulation results have some controversy, especially ECOTECT’s energy consumption for heating and cooling. There is on research which is about feasibility and applicability of the ECOTECT’s energy consumption. However, in our country there has a lot of practice based on the energy consumption of ECOTECT. In the accuracy of the software itself is a dispute, the case that be used in practice is debatable. Therefore, there is an urgent need to know the feasibility and the applicability of the ECOTECT energy simulation.By contrast the differences between ECOTECT to the professional energy consumption software Designbuilder in building energy simulation, the article analysis the feasibility and the applicability of the ECOTECT’s energy consumption. At first we compared the differences between two software in calculation method, model, parameter settings and other aspects, found that the ECOTECT energy simulation have many problems. Secondly, by compared the differences of results between ECOTECT and Designbuilder, analysis there is big differences about the energy consumption between ECOTECT and Designbuilder. Finally, compared the differences between two software in judge the merits of the energy consumption of different architectural programs, and by comparison with the literature conclusion or the basis of thermal theory, we concluded that there is a big limited scope of the ECOTECT energy consumption in the design of the auxiliary program, It is a certain extent inapplicable that use the ECOTECT of energy consumption calculations to determine the pros and cons of the building in orientation, window walls, sun room and the pros and cons of maintaining structural materials. It is a certain extent applicable that use the ECOTECT of energy consumption calculations to determine the pros and cons of building shade ways.The conclusions of this paper help designers to make better use of the ECOTECT software, make the architects know the feasibility and applicability of the ECOTECT building energy simulation well, avoid that error calculations of ECOTECT energy simulation used in practice. While the article enhancing the architects have a clear understanding about the factors which may affect the result of the energy simulation, so we can do the building energy efficiency design better. The whole thesis contains about49000words,102pictures and charts.