A framework to evaluate the architect-friendliness of environmental impact assessment tools for buildings

Abstract

Legal actions towards a mandatory environmental impact assessment (EIA) of buildings can be expected in the (near) future. Due to the complexity of EIA, software tools will become an indispensable aid in the architectural design process. Especially in early design, feedback on the environmental impact is needed, since early design decisions have a major influence on the final impact of the design. However, most existing EIA tools insufficiently take into account the architect's needs as a user and are especially not suitable for use in early design. Therefore, an evaluation framework with criteria for architect-friendliness of EIA tools, with a specific focus on early design, is developed based on a large-scale survey, interviews and a focus group with practising architects. This framework can be used to evaluate the architect-friendliness of existing EIA tools and as a guidance for the development of new architect-oriented tools.