Assessing the energy performance of Makerere University using an intergration of BIM and GIS.

Abstract

Many institutional buildings in East African countries do not incorporate the issue of energy efficiency at the design, construction and utilization stages. Land plot size and availability dictate the building’s orientation and massing. The situation at Makerere University is no different. The University is connected to the National Power Grid and uses hydroelectric power as the main source of energy supplemented by generator power, solar power, fuel gas, and firewood and the absence of a master plan coupled with the rapid population increase means that developments on the ground remain ad-hoc for the foreseeable future. Faculties (now under various colleges and schools) are the highest power consumers with 60% followed by Halls of residences at 21% over 11 months and staff residences at 9.2% and administration buildings at 8.1%. The study area has policies that advocate for creating infrastructure that fit into the university financial resources and ensure that the viability and sustainability of such facilities and services are optimized, but because a rapid increase in population there has been an increase in demand for facilities which are put in place without considering their impact on the already strained energy demand. The goal of this research project is to analyze the building energy performance of the study area by assessing the energy consumption and forecasting energy consumption using an energy prediction model for the study area. This was done using a GIS-BIM approach to the analyses the energy performance and then predict the energy consumption using a GP regression forecasting tool. The result was a 3D campus model, an energy model, and energy demand prediction. From the results, it can be derived that the study area consumes a lot of energy, and there is a trend of gradual increase in energy demand and consumption if measures are not put in place, the study then recommends various energy efficiency measures to be put in place.