Contents

0 Quality in environmental design 0-1

0.1 Introduction 0-1

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0.2 The design process 0-6
0.3 Design calculations quality plan 0-7
0.4 Sources of uncertainty 0-9
0.5 User issues 0-10
0.6 Performance assessment methods (pam) 0-10
References 0-11

1 Environmental criteria for design 1-1

1.1 Introduction 1-1
1.2 Notation and definitions 1-2
1.3 Thermal environment 1-3
1.4 Modelling thermal comfort 1-7
1.5 Environmental criteria 1-9
1.6 Additional factors potentially affecting comfort 1-18
1.7 Outdoor thermal comfort 1-22
1.8 Determination of required outdoor air supply rate 1-24
1.9 Visual environment 1-27
1.10 Noise 1-29
1.11 Vibration 1-40
References 1-44
Appendix 1.A1: Determination of predicted mean vote (pmv) 1-49
Appendix 1.A2: Measuring operative temperature 1-51

2 External design data 2-1

2.1 Introduction 2-1
2.2 Notation 2-6
2.3 UK near-extreme weather data 2-7
2.4 UK cold weather data 2-7
2.5 UK warm weather data 2-7
2.6 Wet and dry bulb temperatures 2-8
2.7 Worldwide weather data 2-10
2.8 Solar and illuminance data 2-18
2.9 Wind data 2-35
2.10 Climate change 2-43
2.11 Urban heat island effect 2-46
References 2-52

3 Thermal properties of building structures 3-1

3.1 Introduction 3-1
3.2 Notation 3-2
3.3 Heat losses from buildings 3-3
3.4 Roofs 3-13
3.5 Ground floors and basements 3-13
3.6 Windows 3-20
3.7 Thermal bypasses 3-24
3.8 Linear thermal transmittance 3-25
 3.9 Non-steady-state thermal characteristics 3-25
References 3-26
Appendix 3.A1: Moisture content of masonry materials 3-29
Appendix 3.A2: Thermal conductivity and thermal transmittance 3-29

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testing
Appendix 3.A3: Heat transfer at surfaces 3-30
Appendix 3.A4: Seasonal heat losses through ground floors 3-31
Appendix 3.A5: Application of the combined method to multiple 3-32
layer structures
Appendix 3.A6: Calculation method for admittance, decrement factor 3-33
and surface factor
Appendix 3.A7: Properties of materials 3-35
Appendix 3.A8: Thermal properties of typical constructions 3-48

4 Ventilation and air infiltration 4-1

4.1 Introduction and the role of ventilation 4-1
4.2 Ventilation and air quality 4-3
4.3 Ventilating heat loss 4-9
4.4 Ventilation systems 4-11
4.5 Natural and mixed mode ventilation 4-16
4.6 Methods for estimating air infiltration and natural ventilation 4-22
References 4-30
Appendix 4.A1: Basic pressure coefficient data 4-33
Appendix 4.A2: Summary of measured air leakage data 4-36
Appendix 4.A3: Air infiltration development algorithm (aida) 4-39

5 Thermal design, plant sizing and energy conservation 5-1

5.1 Introduction 5-1
5.2 Notation 5-2
5.3 The role of standards 5-8
5.4 Relationship to the design process 5-9
5.5 Design calculation quality plan 5-10
5.6 Thermal response 5-10
5.7 Calculation methods for thermal design 5-17
5.8 Heating plant sizing 5-30
5.9 Cooling plant sizing 5-40
5.10 Summertime temperatures in buildings 5-53
5.11 Building energy demand 5-68
References 5-75
Appendix 5.A1: Overview of calculation methods 5-78
Appendix 5.A2: Equations for determination of sensible heating 5-80
and cooling loads
Appendix 5.A3: calculation of operative and mean radiant temperatures 5-86
Appendix 5.A4: Banded weather data 5-87
Appendix 5.A5: Glass and glazing systems 5-90
Appendix 5.A6: Example calculations 5-96
Additional appendices 5-104

6 Internal heat gains 6-1

6.1 Introduction 6-1
6.2 Benchmark values for internal heat gains 6-1
 6.3 Occupants 6-2
6.4 Lighting 6-2
6.5 Personal computers and office equipment 6-6
6.6 Electric motors 6-6

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6.7 Cooking appliances 6-8
6.8 Hospital and laboratory equipment 6-9
6.9 Heat gain from laboratory animals 6-10
6.10 Domestic appliances and equipment 6-11
References 6-11
Appendix 6.A1: Rate of heat gain from restaurant/cooking equipment 6-13

7 Moisture transfer and condensation 7-1

7.1 Introduction 7-1
7.2 Notation 7-1
7.3 Psychrometry of water vapour in air 7-2
7.4 Moisture content of materials 7-3
7.5 Mechanisms of moisture movement 7-4
7.6 Surface condensation and mould growth 7-8
7.7 Interstitial condensation 7-9
7.8 Inside and outside design conditions 7-11
7.9 Condensation calculations 7-15
7.10 Control of condensation 7-19
References 7-21

8 Health issues 8-1

8.1 Introduction 8-1
8.2 Thermal discomfort and health implications 8-1
8.3 Humidity 8-4
8.4 Air quality and ventilation 8-7
8.5 Visual environment 8-13
8.6 Water quality 8-18
8.7 Electromagnetic effects 8-21
8.8 Noise and vibration 8-22
8.9 Communities and health 8-23
References 8-23

Index I-1
 Quality in environmental design 0-1
0 Quality in environmental design
0.1 Introduction
CIBSE Guide A: Environmental design is the premier
reference source for designers of low energy sustainable
buildings. It is perceived as a guide to good current practice
and CIBSE members are encouraged to follow the guidance
in discharging their design duties.
The global concerns for climate change, shared by both the
public and governments, has resulted in the commitment
to targets for reducing the emission of greenhouse and
ozone depletion gases, such as CO2 and cfcs by most of the
developed countries.
Building services engineers, in collaboration with other
members of the design team, are responsible for creating
buildings that are comfortable, healthy and safe, when
exposed the varying conditions outdoors.
CIBSE requires its members to discharge this responsibility
with due regard for the wider environment and producing
a sustainable design.
0.1.1 Purpose and scope of this
Guide
The purpose of this CIBSE Guide is to assist building
services engineers to set criteria for and develop a design, in
collaboration with other design disciplines, that meets the
client brief, complies with the various statutory require­
ments, and is sustainable in the face of a changing climate
(which would be significantly different from today’s
climate), within the lifetime of the buildings.
CIBSE Guide A defines the main criteria for the design in
terms of comfort and health, and provides a consistent set
of data for internal and external design conditions and the
appropriate methods of calculation. The Guide also covers
the issue of energy demand and carbon emissions, which
inevitably are affected by achieving comfort and health
criteria. It provides guidance on quality of design by
introducing logical processes through which engineers
carry out such calculations and make decisions, in a
consistent, repeatable and auditable manner.
Using this Guide, designers will be able to work with and
advise their clients, and other members of the design team,
on the most appropriate type of building components,
namely fabric and façade, and the environmental condition­
ing systems, i.e. heating, ventilation, and air conditioning
(hvac), lighting, and low- and zero-carbon generation
technologies, including renewable sources of energy.
A0 (v2.2) final.indd 1
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0.1.2 Purpose and scope of this
chapter
Chapter 0 is new to the Guide and has been added to
consider the quality of the environmental design. It
identifies two specific requirements for achieving quality in
building design, namely adopting a holistic approach to the
design, and a system to assure the quality of the design
calculations and decisions, i.e. a quality assurance
procedure.
The other chapters in this Guide each deal with an
individual aspect of environmental design, namely criteria
for design (e.g. comfort criteria, weather data etc.) and
methods of calculation such as fabric performance, heating
and ventilation system sizing, methods for thermal comfort
evaluation, energy demand etc.
The present chapter provides guidance on how minimal
necessary checks and procedures could be built-in to the
design process in order to improve the quality of the output
produced by the engineer. This will have the benefit of
assuring the clients that they will receive a robust and
consistent service from the engineers who follow this
guidance.
However, this Guide is not intended to be exhaustive or
definitive and it will be necessary for users of the guidance
given to exercise their own professional judgement when
deciding whether to abide by or depart from it.
0.1.3 Quality of design
The main criteria for building environmental design
decisions include comfort (thermal, visual and acoustic)
and health (indoor air quality, growth of mould and
bacteria, etc.). At the same time the engineer must ensure
that the services strategies chosen take account of the longer
lasting features of the building so that they will still provide
robust solutions under the changing climate. These
decisions must inevitably also comply with the cost
constraints and a diverse range of regulatory requirements,
including energy consumption and greenhouse gas
emissions.
The awareness of impact of human activity on the wider
environment has given rise to the voluntary and regulatory
targets for the reduction of greenhouse gases (ghg), such as
CO2, produced as a result of burning fossil fuels for
producing heat and electricity, and ozone depletion gases,
such as cfcs used in cooling and refrigeration systems.
Furthermore the security of the supply of energy is a real
concern for all countries except that small number of
countries with large reserves of gas, oil and coal.
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 0-2 Environmental design
Regulatory targets for CO2 emissions and the use of
voluntary sustainability ratings such as BREEAM (2014)
and LEED (Green Building Council, 2014), linked some­
times to planning permissions or financing of projects and
marketing are now prevalent in many countries. For
example in EU countries from 2019 all new buildings need
to comply with the concept of ‘nearly zero energy buildings’
(nzeb).
As a result, achieving a building with low energy consump­
tion and low CO2 emissions has become a dominant
objective for the design. If designers are not careful, there is
a risk that achieving this goal may have adverse impact the
achievement of the main goals of producing a building, that
is to produce a safe, healthy, comfortable and productive
environment for its users.
Designing buildings that are energy efficient and ‘low
carbon’ as well as satisfying the cost constraints is possible.
However achieving this goal depends not only on the
resources employed (i.e. skills, knowledge and experience
of the engineers) and the method and tools they choose, but
also on adopting a holistic approach to the design and close
collaboration with other members of the design team.
A systematic approach to the design that combines these
two elements, i.e. employment of resources and an
integrated approach, is required to achieve a high quality
design. Quality Assurance has been introduced in this
edition of CIBSE Guide A to achieve this end.
0.1.4 Integrated design
The achievement of an integrated design of the building,
requires, in particular, collaboration in determining the
shape, orientation, fabric and systems of buildings. This
entails significantly more analysis than traditionally was
required when an elemental approach to energy regulations
was sufficient and often the main decision was whether or
Controls/constraints
Initial cost Fire safety Security
Whole life cost Noise/vibration
Water/waste
Functional
requirement
Input (client needs) Building design process
Site parameters
Geometry/ Envelope/façade/
aesthetics build system/structure
Delivery/design mechanism
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not air conditioning would be required by the client. The
engineer’s role in such cases was to provide a suitable ‘off
the shelf ’ system with sufficient capacity.
Working with architects and other design disciplines,
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building services engineers will have a leading role in
delivery of an integrated design solution. Figure 0.1 sum­
marises the overall integrated process. The input, i.e. what
the client requires from the building and the site (which
has a certain size and characteristics and determines the
overall geometry and possibly environmental constraints),
form the input to the design process for all disciplines. The
output is clearly a building that is safe and provides a
healthy environment for its users. The numerous controls
and constraints are represented using a few categories. The
output must be achieved while these constraints are met.
Various design disciplines use their knowledge, skills and
tools, to ensure the design meets the client requirements
within the controls and constraints to achieve the required
output.
Figure 0.1 shows that the design process must be a close
and intensive collaboration and interaction of various
design disciplines and teams, as well as the clients and the
user stakeholders.
Figure 0.2 illustrates the iterative nature of design,
particularly at the early design stages.
The issue of initial cost, the operational cost and indeed the
whole life cycle cost must also be considered if sustainability
is to be incorporated into the design. Financial pressures
often challenges this approach as the emphasis on initial
costs will be increased. The whole life cost of the building
will play a major factor in the design and needs to be
considered in appointments and client brief.
A collaborative and well integrated team will stand a far
better chance of facing this challenge compared to
intermittent involvement of various design disciplines.
Regulations Climate change
Environment
A healthy,
comfortable, safe
and productive Output
environment for
building users
HVAC/lighting/
other systems
Figure 0.1  Design integration
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 Quality in environmental design 0-3
Passive Active
Brief Criteria Renewables
measures measures
The present edition of CIBSE Guide A takes account of
these significant developments and future trends, and
provides much updated information and guidance for
building services engineers and associated disciplines. In
particular, emphasis is placed on quality assurance to
ensure that the product, i.e. the completed building, is fit
for its purpose.
0.1.5 Regulatory requirements and
CIBSE Guide A
Regulations, such as the Building Regulations, such as the
Building Regulations in England (TSO, 2013) (and similar
legislation in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) and
Energy Codes in the USA are the minimum requirements.
Most of such regulatory requirements define performance
targets for individual elements and hvac and lighting
systems components, e.g. the thermal transmittance of the
building envelope, the specific fan power of air handling
units etc. In the past few years, due to the concern for the
environment, energy and environmental perfor­mance of
buildings have been given regulatory targets, mainly for
CO2 emissions and water consumption. While these
regulatory targets and standards can be challenging, e.g. the
EU Energy Performance in Buildings Directive (EPBD)
(EU, 2010), requires all member states to adopt near-zero
energy regulations by 2019, they are invariably limited to
determining the performance of the design in a given set of
pre-defined conditions of use.
For example, Building Regulations 2013 Part L defines a
National Calculation Methodology (NCM) (BRE, 2013)
(for calculating the building’s energy demand under a
predetermined set of climatic data and usage scenarios).
Similarly, most of the US energy codes and standards have
been developed using ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2013, which
uses the same principle of comparing the design
performance with a baseline building of the same type.
Other countries, e.g. France, have chosen to adopt absolute
limiting values for emission rates for different building
types.
The environmental sustainability ranking systems such as
BREEAM (2014) and LEED (Green Building Council,
2014) rely on such standards as the basis for their allocation
of credits. For example BREEAM awards credits depending
on a building’s performance as defined by its Energy
Performance Certificate rating. In a similar approach the
LEED system awards credits when a building performs
better than the target defined by the above mentioned
ASHRAE standard.
This means that the building is only checked against a
single climatic conditions and a single set of usage scenarios.
Furthermore, such calculations are limited to energy
performance and do not address the basic design questions
A0 (v2.2) final.indd 3
Figure 0.2  Design is an iterative
process, in particular at earlier
stages of the design
Compliance Concept
check design
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of thermal comfort, plant sizing and optimisation of the
building and its systems in real usage scenarios.
Regulations and planning processes are to be observed and
should be integrated into the design process, but they are
not a substitute for design and its performance under the
diverse conditions and usage scenarios. Engineers are
responsible for good design that works under widely
varying conditions and usage regimes. CIBSE Guide A
provides guidance and procedures to engineers to help
them discharge this responsibility robustly and consistently.
Comparing energy performance of a proposed design with
a typical building of its type under a single climatic
condition and usage scenario may not necessarily lead to an
optimised design. For example, design strategies and
systems selected for buildings with 24-hour operation may
be different from those for buildings with 12-hour
operation. Night cooling might be a suitable option for the
12-hour operation situation but may have little impact on
24-hour operation. However, in regulatory situations, some
building categories may have only a single usage pattern,
e.g. 12-hour operation for a retail high street. However, this
may include a 24-hour superstore. Similarly, an office
complex may combine a company hq, operating on a 12-
hour day, with a 24-hour call centre. Clearly for each of
these cases relying on a single usage pattern may lead to an
erroneous strategy being selected.
The regulatory targets are designed to achieve a consistent
measure for the defined categories of buildings. CIBSE
Guide A provides methods, procedures and guidance, to
assess and/or optimise the design for the intended use with
the most appropriate system types employed or for
robustness of the solutions in the face of a changing climate
and likely changes of use.
0.1.6 How to use this Guide
This Guide is intended to help building services engineers
to answer relevant questions throughout the various stages
of the life of a building from inception, design, construction
and operation. This Guide will only deal with the design
questions that are within its scope as described above.
The relevant design questions are numerous and will
require various degrees of rigour and accuracy at each stage
of the design and the building’s life. Furthermore, the
design is an iterative process as changes to building’s shape,
size, orientation, fabric and fittings, and function will affect
the environmental performance of the building and the
systems required to provide the specified health and
comfort conditions. Inevitably not all possibilities can be
foreseen and dealt with within a single guide. This Guide
therefore must be used in conjunction with a host of other
information and guidance that deal with elements of the
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 0-4 Environmental design
subjects covered here in detail, or restrict and impact the
use of elements of design for other purposes, e.g. fire, safety
and security, etc.
Structure of the Guide
The Guide has been structured as suitable for a printed
book format and therefore each chapter focuses on a
separate subject. However, the Guide aims to promote a
holistic approach to design. It includes various flow charts
Define internal design conditions for
comfort and indoor environmental quality
(chapter 1)
Define external design conditions
(consider the risk of climate change)
(chapter 2)
Determine the design internal heat gains for summer
comfort assessment and/or cooling plant sizing
(chapter 6)
Determine/define the envelope to achieve the minimum
performance required for regulatory purposes
(chapter 3)
Define the amount of fresh air ventilation rates
required for each space
(chapter 4)
Determine if indoor air quality can be
achieved using natural ventilation
(chapter 4)
Determine whether thermal comfort can be
achieved using natural ventilation
(chapter 5)
Determine whether comfort can be achieved using
mechanical ventilation without the need for
mechanical cooling
(chapter 5)
Determine the risk of interstitial and surface
condensation and mould growth
(chapter 7)
Figure 0.3  Generic design flow chart indicating chapter and publication references where information can be found
A0 (v2.2) final.indd 4
that bring these chapters together to address a particular
design question.
A generic design process is given in the flow chart below
(Figure 0.3). The flow chart also indicates the chapter or
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publication in which the most relevant information, data
and calculation methods will be found.
It is recommended that Guide users use this generic flow
chart as an overall checklist. Users are encouraged to
produce their own flow charts using this generic flow chart
as a basis, adding to or modifying it as appropriate.
Determine the heating, cooling, ventilation
and lighting strategies
(CIBSE Guide B; SLL Code for Lighting)
Determine the building’s energy demand
and CO2 emissions
(chapter 5)
Evaluate options that will reduce energy
demand and CO2 emissions
(CIBSE Guide F)
(If relevant) check compliance with regulatory and/or
planning requirements and/or voluntary targets
(e.g. EPC ratings) for energy efficiency/energy demand
and CO2 emissions. May require revised fabric and
fenestration specifications, shading devices, etc.
(This could require a number of iterations.)
(chapter 5)
Determine the size of plant for local and central HVAC
systems. May require revised fabric and fenestration
specifications, shading devices etc., which
may require repeat of some of the above steps
(chapter 5)
(If relevant) assess the need for low and zero carbon
(LZC) technologies and their type and capacity
Identify any health issues and mitigations with
respect to the systems as proposed
(chapter 8)
Identify and document the list of key design parameters
and/or assumptions that changes to their value will
invalidate the proposed design calculations
(chapters 0 and 5 (Quality Assurance))
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