For the interior to work effectively, the design of the exterior is crucial. Conversely, an environmentally responsive facade is reliant on the efficient design of the guts of a building.
The building envelope is a significant contributor to heat gains and losses for buildings. The actual percentage obviously depends on many factors, including orientation and building location but heat gain or loss can be as high as 30 per cent or more. This simple fact highlights the need for a concerted design of building façades between the architect, façade consultant, ESD consultant and mechanical engineer.