A Study on Parametric Design Application to Hospital Retrofitting for Improving Energy Savings and Comfort Conditions

Abstract

The scientific literature offers a wide range of studies evidencing the progress done in the retrofit actions dealing with the current building stock; however, renovations of hospitals are still an open field of research due to their typical complexity that is usually associated with a very challenging updating processes to maintain or increase operational level. The paper provides a synthesis of a study developed by a team of the Department of Architecture for Saint Orsola Hospital in Bologna with the scope to explore innovative retrofitting strategies. The brief provided by the management unit of the hospital was connected to the general renovation plan involving the entire site and particularly some existing buildings taking into account some limitations concerning budget availabilities and everyday activities needed to ensure acceptable service level for the end users. The design approach starts from defining a basic unit (a typical hospital room) that is deeply analyzed to report the starting conditions (indoor environmental parameters) and then used to simulate the potential impacts of retrofitting actions on its performances. The results allowed to parametrically develop a step by step strategy scaled on each building sector and on the building as a whole to evaluate the global impact on energy performances while considering time and costs of each retrofitting options.