Elastic buildings: Calibrated district-scale simulation of occupant-flexible campus operation for hybrid work optimization

Before 2020, the way occupants utilized the built environment had been changing slowly towards scenarios in which occupants have more choice and flexibility in where and how they work. The global COVID-19 pandemic accelerated this phenomenon rapidly through lockdowns and hybrid work arrangements. Many occupants and employers are considering keeping some of these flexibility-based strategies due to their benefits and cost impacts. This paper explores how demand-driven control strategies in the built environment might support the transition to increased workplace flexibility by simulating various scenarios related to the operational technologies and policies of a real-world campus using a district-scale City Energy Analyst (CEA) model that is calibrated with measured energy demand data and occupancy profiles extracted from WiFi data. These scenarios demonstrate the energy impact of ramping building operations up and down more rapidly and effectively to the flex-based work strategies that may solidify. The scenarios show a 5-15% decrease in space cooling demand due to occupant absenteeism of 25-75% if centralized building system operation is in place, but as high as 17-63% if occupancy-driven building controls are implemented. The paper discusses technologies and strategies that are important in this paradigm shift of operations.

Automated summary

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the increase in workplace flexibility, and this paper discusses how demand-driven control strategies in the built environment can support this transition. By simulating different scenarios, the study finds that the implementation of occupancy-driven building controls can result in a decrease in space cooling demand of up to 17-63% due to employee absenteeism.