The contribution of the intelligent solar screens to the energy efficiency

This paper investigates the annual energy consumption of an office building located in the north-eastern Mediterranean area of Italy equipped with automated shadings. The simultaneous impact of automated dynamic solar shadings and lighting control is calculated using Energy Plus and Radiance. Results show that a substantial reduction of energy demand for cooling and lighting could be achieved in office spaces if an integrated approach for automatic control of motorized shadings is used in conjunction with controllable electric lighting systems. Automated shadings are an irreplaceable strategic instrument to improve thermal and visual comfort in high energy efficiency buildings.