Life Cycle Optimization of Energy Efficient Industrial Facility

The minimal investment cost, flexibility and expandability of the built structure were the highest priority planning aims in the development and planning of industrial facilities and production halls. With the sharpening of the building codes and upcoming of European polices on climate protection and energy efficiency – such as the plus-energy buildings, the life cycle optimization is starting to gain importance with industrial investors. Optimized, highly efficient building hull and building services play crucial role in the realization of over-all energy-concept of modern industrial facility.In the case study of energy efficient industrial facility within the research project INFO (Interdisciplinary Research for Energy efficient Production) a tool for calculation of life cycle costs and emissions of the building hull was developed. For the proposed building model of industrial facility three different façade-typologies (metal sheets, metal-sandwich panels, wood panels) were simulated and calculated by the tool. In terms of ecology (CO2 emissions) the wood-based façade features the best performance, however is most costly in the initial costs, which would have been a knock-out criterion when planning an industrial facility in the past. However, the life-cycle cost related findings imply that even though the examined typologies feature large differences in the initial cost, after a period of 50 years of life-time all three façade-types sum up to the same amount of life-cycle costs. We argue that for achievement of sustainability aims therefore a long term view is necessary, as well as further development of planning tools which support decision-making process in the early design phases.