Introduction course GPR Urban Planning

Instructions for practical exercise

W/E
Utrecht - Tilburg, maart 2012
Instructions for practical exercise

W/E adviseurs

PO Box 227 PO Box 896

3500 AE Utrecht 5600 AW Eindhoven
Visiting address: Mariaplaats 21E, Utrecht Visiting address: Jan van Hooffstraat 8E, 5611
ED, Eindhoven

T +31 30 6778777 T +31 40 235 8450

http://gprsoftware.nl/english/sustainability-
assessment/gpr-urban-planning/

W/E adviseurs – oefenopgave GPR Stedenbouw 1

 Inhoudsopgave

1 First view on GPR Urban Planning 1

2 Practice with program navigation 3

3 Practice with data entry 4

3.1 Go to sheet ‘input’ 4

4 Specify, evaluate and analyse design choices 5

4.1 Go to tab ‘Spatial Layout’ 5
4.2 Go to the theme sheet ‘Energy’ 6
4.3 Go to the theme sheet “Usage value” 7

5 Check the results 8

5.1 Go through the overview sheets 8
5.2 End of exercise! 8

W/E adviseurs – oefenopgave GPR Stedenbouw 2

1 First view on GPR Urban Planning

GPR Urban Planning is an Excel application

Technically is GPR Urban Planning is an Excel-application: you open the document on your own
Windowsa PC and store the data yourself.
Note: If you save your work file do this as an “.xlsm” file, otherwise you will lose the macro
functionalities

What is the purpose of GPR Urban Planning ?

GPR Urban Planning is an evaluation tool for sustainable urban planning. It is more than an
instrument to evaluate the sustainability performance of an urban plan g in hindsight. GPR Urban
Planning is also a tool to:
- Formulate ambitions in advance
- Make choices during the planning process
- To adjust an urban plan during implementation

What is the structure?

GPR Urban Planning has 5 major themes. Each major theme is subdivided, see below

How does GPR Urban Planning work?

GPR Urban Planning works in a simple way:
- You enter specifications of the plan in the input screen
- You specify the design choices in the theme sheets. You can always make choices by means of a
pull-down menu.
- Each selection field offers the possibility to add an explanatory note. Explanations are collected
in a separate overview sheet.
- Each selection field has the possibility to mark it. You can see which choices have been made
definitive, because the text color of marked selection field changes from red to black.

a
Unfortunately GPR UP cannot not execute on Apple computers unless they are running Windows.

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Navigation?
At the top of the screen you can find the navigation bar van GPR Urban Planning: by clicking the
buttons you can switch between themes and other worksheets..

Navigation bar GPR Urban Planning

Overview of button functions:

Theme Energy

Theme Spatial Layout

Theme Health

Theme Usage Value

Theme Future Value

Input screen (general)

Results screen

Sustainability label

Overview of all explanations for selected theme

Overview of all notes with selected theme

For a number of measures extra information is available in the form of an explanation (click on the ‘i’
symbol). Users can also add their own notes (click on the ‘pencil’). Notes can be edited by the user,
explanations cannot.

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2 Practice with program navigation

Open the Excel document ‘GPR Urban Planning-Exercise’ and click on the following icon:

________________________________________________________

A: See sheet: ‘input’

See pull down menu on right side with the language choice. Choose your preferred language.
Also select your preferred Energy regulation according to country and region

B See the pull-down menu at the subjects ‘Features planning area / types of areas’

See the ‘results’

→ See how results are displayed

________________________________________________________

C: See the sheet ‘Usage Value’

→ Scroll to sub-topic ‘functionality’

→ See one of the pull down menus

________________________________________________________

D: See the sheet ‘Energy’

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→ Scroll to ‘results energy performance calculation’

→ Click on ‘A / terraced house by year of construction’

→ Click on ‘energy label’

Now you know how to navigate through GPR Urban Planning and how to enter plan data and design
choices. In the following steps you will practice with this new knowledge.

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3 Practice with data entry

3.1 Go to sheet ‘input’

The municipality wants to know what the effect is of a plan version where more homes are being
realised. In GPR Urban Planning, two plan versions can be looked at next to each other. You can see
on every input sheet the data of version 1 and version 2. With the instructions below, you will adjust
variant 2.

→ Adjust in this tab the region typology to ‘green urban’ at the region type variant 2.

→ Adjust in this tab the ambition in the subject ‘Energy’

- energy ambition: 7,5

→ Adjust in this tab at ‘surfaces variant 2’

- the built surface increases with 130.000 m2

- the green surface decreases with 135.000 m2
- the surface of water decreases with 15.000 m2
- the surface of hardening increases with 20.000 m 2

→ Adjust in this tab at ‘situation variant 2’ the housing program

- 200 existing terraced houses are maintained

- + 170 apartments
- + 200 terraced houses
- + 100 semi-detached houses
- + 4000 m2 small office
- + 1000 m2 shops
- + 1000 m2 meeting building

→Now you have entered variant with a different spatial program.

→ Look at the differences at theme ‘Spatial Layout / subject ‘Space and land usage’
What are the differences in:
- density (FSI)
- amount of open space (GSI)
- pressure on public space (OSR)

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4 Specify, evaluate and analyse design choices

4.1 Go to tab ‘Spatial Layout’

→ Scroll to sub-topic ‘Space and land usage’

→ Select design choices in both variants, based on the entry data below
(and use the checkbox to mark your choices)
(you will see differences between the variants. These result from the differences in housing
programs and the spatial planning)
- Area with stacked functions increases from less than 10% in the basic variant increases to 15%
in compact variant
- there is no soil pollution
- both variants are developed based on layer approach, with optimal use of differences in height
and geomorphology
- in both variants, there is a clear separation of water/green and infrastructure
- in both variants the ground is excavated by 2 metres in order to prepare it for construction and
water structure
- no groundwater is pumped up

→Enter the following remark in the explanation of the field about sanitation
- ‘Ground sanitation was the motivation of the project, expansion with housing makes the
sanitation financially feasible.

→ Analyse the results

- What is the score of both variants for Spacial Layout?
- Which 3 design choices determine most of the change in performance in this sub-topic?

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4.2 Go to the theme sheet ‘Energy’

Energy is considered as an important theme. It has been indicated that an energy vision will be
prepared. Make a beginning for that by entering choices for both variants.

Data

data basic variant Data compact variant

collective system not feasible, but individual
electrical heat pump is possible
10% renewable electricity can be generated
locally
assume 20% improvement in energy
performance
Make own assumptions for area-related
measures
the existing dwellings are from building period
1965 - 1974, with energy label E
collective heat pump
same
assume 70% improvement in energy
performance
same
bring the existing buildings to label A level

→ Check what EPL value is attained in both variants

→ Check which performance scores are attained on the submodules and on the total.

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4.3 Go to the theme sheet “Usage value”

→ Scroll to subtheme mobility

→ Apply the option below in the compact variant

Option Public transport: in the variant ‘compact’ the option of high-grade public transport is
included. Planned is a frequent public transport connection (4x per hour) with good accessibility for
disabled persons. This can be regarded as competing for car drives to the nearby city.

→ Explain the differences

- what is the score of both variants on the mobility subtheme?
- which 3 design choices are in this calculation most important for the differences?

→ Scroll to the subtheme ’functionality’

→ Het section “usage quality public space” still has to be entered. Use the data below

- the basic variant is mainly aimed at the residential function. In the compact variant other
functions are inlcuded (small offices, cultural services, more shops and catering). In the
compact variant there is function mixing.
- the public space in the basic variant is prepared for average accessibility for disabled persons; in
the compact variant more attention is given to this aspect, the public space is maximally
accessible.
- In the basic variant green and water are maximally adjusted to recreational use. In the compact
variant that is only partially possible.
- In the compact variant there are less playing possibilities. Adequate in the basic variant, in de
compact variant the play grounds for the groups 6-11 and 12- 18 year are sub-standard (tip:
click on info-button)
- in both variants a urban green structure is available at maximally 900 meter
- in the basic variant almost every dwelling is at short distance to usable greenery. In the
compact variant that share decreases to below 50 %.

→ Check the differences on the subtheme ’functionality’

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5 Check the results

5.1 Go through the overview sheets

A: Look at the ‘results sheet’

→ Check the differences between variants

________________________________________________________

B: Look at the sheet: ‘Sustainability label’

→ You can see the ‘star rating’ for the basic variant
________________________________________________________

C: Look at the overview sheet “notes”’ (still Dutch text ‘opmerkingen’)

→ You will see the annotations that you have made with the themes
________________________________________________________

5.2 End of exercise!

You have become familiar with GPR Urban Planning. You can practice with:
- Navigation
- Input of plan data
- Working with a variant
- Entering design choices -
- Looking at the overview sheets
To actually work with GPR Urban planning you will need specialists from different thematic angles
for the planning details. Be aware that working with GPR Urban Planning is mainly teamwork.
If you use GPR Urban Planning it will provide you with much insight. For design, ambition setting,
making inventories and monitoring. W/E wishes you good luck.

W/E adviseurs – oefenopgave GPR Stedenbouw 11