The document discusses Post Occupancy Evaluation (POE) which involves assessing building performance after occupation, focusing on techniques, benefits, and common challenges. It highlights the importance of pre- and post-project benchmarks, metering strategies, and occupant satisfaction for effective evaluations. Key methods and considerations for planning and conducting POE are also outlined to enhance building performance and user experience.

1. Stephen Ward, AECOM
Regional Director
Michelle Agha-Hossein, BSRIA
Sustainable Building Engineer
Post Occupancy
Evaluation (POE)
#SoftLandingsConference

2.  What is POE?
 Techniques and Methods
 The Benefits of POE
 Issues and pitfalls to be aware of for a
successful POE campaign

3. "... the process of evaluating buildings in a
systematic and rigorous manner after they have
been built and occupied for some time“
Preiser et al. (1988)

4.  Post Occupancy : evaluate project success
 Pre- and Post-Project: set benchmarks
(baselines)
 Regular intervals: identify potential areas for
improvements.

6. Initial Aftercare
(0-6 months after occupancy,
within the first 12 months)
Long term Aftercare and POE
(12-36 months after occupancy)
• Fine tuning
• Checking and getting all the
metering to work properly
• Checking the energy and
environmental data
• Informing any seasonal
commissioning activities
• Conducting review
meetings
• Assessing the operational
performance of the building
against the design metrics
• Assessing how well the
building meets the
client/end users’ needs
• Additional fine tuning (if
needed)

7. Which technique to use?
It depends on the:
 Complexity and size of the project
 Budget and time available
 Metrics set at the design stage

8.  Specific and clear
 Measurable
 Achievable
 Realistic
 Timely
Examples:
 Economic: capital cost, operational cost
 Environmental: electricity, fossil fuels, water,
waste, emissions
 Social: occupant satisfaction, IEQ factors

9. • AUDE (Association of University Directors of
Estates) guide for existing available POE
methods, for example:
 Design Quality Indicators
 BUS Survey
 CIBSE TM22: Energy Assessment and
Reporting Methodology
• BREEAM In-Use

11.  To provide feedback on how buildings perform
 To help building operators to manage their
building effectively
 To provide the end users the opportunity to
express their views
 To be fed back into the design brief for the
future projects
 To help to reduce the “performance gap”
 To help to achieve BREEAM credits for
minimum Excellent rating

12.  General points
 Planning for POE is key – making sure it forms part
of procurement and roles and responsibilities
 Will you get an independent view?
 Have to look beyond the standard 12 month defects
period
 Try to avoid POE being too “energy focussed” –
occupant and FM team experience also critical – all
feed into each other
 How will you information be fed back to client –
what does client need, how quickly and how to keep
them engaged?

13.  Operational Performance
 What are you measuring against?
 Need some realistic prediction of operational energy
performance – NOT PART L!
 Ideally, should break down into different end uses –
e.g. lighting, heating, cooling, pumps and fans, etc
 Use of CIBSE TM54 is ideal
 Use as diagnostic tool if measured use for system or
end use is different

14.  Operational Performance
 Metering, metering, metering
 Need clear metering strategy from design stage –
metering hierarchy set out in log book
 Pay close attention to detail of specification,
installation (especially heat meters), and
commissioning of meters and data transmission and
storage
 Be careful with meters that only feed into BMS, and
don’t have separate AMR system
 Allow time after handover for thorough review and
sense check of meter data, and data reconciliation

15.  Occupant satisfaction
 Maximising response rate is key (e.g. 50-66%)
 Suggest use of paper forms rather than on-line – use
coloured paper!
 Physically hand survey to people and say when will
collect
 Keep it brief – no more than 10-15 minutes to
complete
 Need minimum of two people for survey
 Incentives – sweets!
 Communications prior to survey day are key

16.  IEQ (air quality, thermal comfort, noise and
lighting)
 Check that BMS will store data
 Check sensors are properly located
 Can use data to check operation of building
ventilation strategy, and inform seasonal
commissioning
 Can use “tiny tag” sensors to sense check BMS data
and get finer grained picture of conditions
 Don’t forget people can be the best sensors!!!
 Survey responses and discussion with building
manager can identify specific areas for review of IEQ

17. Thank you!
Any Questions