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FASUDIR

Friendly and Affordable Sustainable Urban District Retrofitting

Project Summary

The FASUDIR project aimed to develop friendly and affordable ways to support sustainable retrofitting of urban districts. Due to the complexity of urban retrofitting, the FASUDIR objective was to develop a new methodology to be implemented in an Integrated Decision Support Tool (IDST). The IDST would enable district modelling through a user friendly interface to help decision makers from the masterplanning phase select the best energy retrofitting strategy, based on dynamic simulation results, and increase the sustainability of the whole district.

To ensure a good match of development and users’ expectations, FASUDIR organised Local Project Committees (LPCs) to identify the main needs of key stakeholders involved, such as urban planners and public authorities. The LPCs were involved throughout all stages of development, setting expectations and testing the beta version of the IDST.

The IDST was validated in three diverse urban areas to highlight the Europe-wide potential applicability. The areas were chosen to be representative of typical district typologies and climates: a cultural heritage district in Santiago de Compostela, Spain; a communist era district in Budapest, Hungary; and a 70’s residential district in Frankfurt, Germany.

IES' Role

IES managed the team working on the development of the IDST and developed the simulation core that provides Key Performance Indicator results used for decision making. The IDST includes Dynamic Simulation Modelling tools both at building and district level and calculates the energy performance of the user-chosen retrofitting variant over the whole life cycle. Cost and embodied energy parameters are also supported to determine overall LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) and LCC (Life Cycle Costing) at building and district levels.

Beyond the dynamic simulation core, IES developed other tools to aid the analysis of results and to guide the end user in reaching the most appropriate retrofitting solutions depending on their preferences and constraints. These analysis tools allow assessment of the energetic weak points of buildings, the feasibility of heat networks, the potential for heat and electricity synergies, the solar potential of buildings, payback time and the return on investment. 

Test Sites

  • Santiago de Compostela, Spain
  • Budapest, Hungary
  • Frankfurt, Germany

Project Status

Completed

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