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Guide A Environmental design (2015, updated 2021) (pdf)
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Guide A Environmental design (2015, updated 2021) (pdf)

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Guide A: Environmental design provides guidance on design criteria and calculation methods such as fabric performance, heating and ventilation system sizing, methods for thermal comfort evaluation and energy demand.


Files supplementing Guide A: Environmental design can be downloaded here:

Chapter 0: blank PAMDOC, PAMDOC example)

Chapter 2: solar radiation, long-wave radiation and daylight; world clear sky solar irradiance tables (by latitude); external design data (worldwide); Figure 2.8 Wind roses for the UK; Table 2.9 Frequency of dry/wet bulb temperatures (June–September); Table 2.12 Solar irradiation on inclined planes; Table 2.13 Solar irradiance on vertical and horizontal surfaces; Table 2.14 Sol-air temperatures; Table 2.19 Frequency of hourly wind speed by direction; Table 2.20 Frequency of hourly wind speed by temperature; Table 2.24 Predicted coincident dry and wet bulb temperatures (summer); Table 2.25 Predicted coincident dry and wet bulb temperatures (winter)

Chapter 5: appendices 7 through 12; Table 5.16 Cooling loads (unshaded) (UK); Table 5.17 Cooling loads (shaded) (UK); Table 5.18 Banded weather data; Table 5.X1 Cooling loads (unshaded) (worldwide); Table 5.X2 Cooling loads (shaded) (worldwide)

Full set of supplementary files (note - this is a large file, so may take some time to download)


Note: This title references BS EN 779: 2012, which has been superseded by BS EN ISO 16890 Air filters for general ventilation. This Eurovent document provides a useful summary of the changes:

Eurovent 4/23: Selection of EN ISO 16890 rated air filter classes for general ventilation applications


Note: Chapter 2 of Guide A supersedes TM34: Weather data with climate change scenarios (2004).


Video highlights and full audio recording of the Guide A launch event, held on 22nd July 2015 at the Grand Connaught Rooms, London 

  • The design process
    • Design calculations quality plan
    • Sources of uncertainty
    • User issues
    • Performance assessment methods (pam)
    • Environmental criteria for design
    • Notation and definitions
    • Thermal environment
    • Modelling thermal comfort
    • Environmental criteria
    • Additional factors potentially affecting comfort
    • Outdoor thermal comfort
    • Determination of required outdoor air supply rate
    • Visual environment
    • Noise
    • Vibration
    • Determination of predicted mean vote (pmv)
    • Measuring operative temperature
  • External design data
    • Notation
    • UK near-extreme weather data
    • UK cold weather data
    • UK warm weather data
    • Wet and dry bulb temperatures
    • Worldwide weather data
    • Solar and illuminance data
    • Wind data
    • Climate change
    • Urban heat island effect
  • Thermal properties of building structures
    • Notation
    • Heat losses from buildings
    • Roofs
    • Ground floors and basements
    • Windows
    • Thermal bypasses
    • Linear thermal transmittance
    • Non-steady-state thermal characteristics
    • Moisture content of masonry materials
    • Thermal conductivity and thermal transmittance testing
    • Heat transfer at surfaces
    • Seasonal heat losses through ground floors
    • Application of the combined method to multiple layer structures
    • Calculation method for admittance, decrement factor and surface factor
    • Properties of materials
    • Thermal properties of typical constructions
  • Ventilation and air infiltration
    • Ventilation and air quality
    • Ventilating heat loss
    • Ventilation systems
    • Natural and mixed mode ventilation
    • Methods for estimating air infiltration and natural ventilation
  • Basic pressure coefficient data
    • Summary of measured air leakage data
    • Air infiltration development algorithm (aida)
  • Thermal design, plant sizing and energy conservation
    • Notation
    • The role of standards
    • Relationship to the design process
    • Design calculation quality plan
    • Thermal response
    • Calculation methods for thermal design
    • Heating plant sizing
    • Cooling plant sizing
    • Summertime temperatures in buildings
    • Building energy demand
    • Overview of calculation methods
    • Equations for determination of sensible heating and cooling loads
    • Calculation of operative and mean radiant temperatures
    • Banded weather data
    • Glass and glazing systems
    • Example calculations
  • Internal heat gains
    • Benchmark values for internal heat gains
    • Occupants
    • Lighting
    • Personal computers and office equipment
    • Electric motors
    • Cooking appliances
    • Hospital and laboratory equipment
    • Heat gain from laboratory animals
    • Domestic appliances and equipment
    • Rate of heat gain from restaurant/cooking equipment
  • Moisture transfer and condensation
    • Notation
    • Psychrometry of water vapour in air
    • Moisture content of materials
    • Mechanisms of moisture movement
    • Surface condensation and mould growth
    • Interstitial condensation
    • Inside and outside design conditions
    • Condensation calculations
    • Control of condensation
  • Health issues
    • Thermal discomfort and health implications
    • Humidity
    • Air quality and ventilation
    • Visual environment
    • Water quality
    • Electromagnetic effects
    • Noise and vibration
    • Communities and health

Guide A Steering Committee: Derrick Braham (Derrick Braham Associates) (chair); Brian Anderson (BRE Scotland); David Arnold (Troup Bywaters + Anders); Geoff Levermore (University of Manchester); Martin Liddament (VEETECH Ltd.); Fergus Nicol (Oxford Brookes University); Marialena Nikolopoulou (University of Kent); Foroutan Parand (AECOM); Chris Sanders (Glasgow Caledonian University); David Williams (Parsons Brinckerhoff Ltd.); Runming Yao (University of Reading)

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