Leading architecture, engineering and construction technology consultants Microdesk, featured Build Health International’s use of Building Information Modeling (BIM) software to maximize the design efficiency of Center for Infectious Disease and Emergency Care at Saint Boniface Hospital, Haiti.
Transforming Health Infrastructure with Autodesk
Millions of people in frontier markets lack access to quality health care. Build Health International (BHI) helps address that need by building localized health care facilities. BHI realized that by minimizing energy costs through sustainable design choices, more of each facility’s budget could go to delivering high-quality patient care. The organization looked to Building Information Modeling (BIM) to provide the building performance analysis power needed to drive design decisions that met health care and energy‑efficiency goals. “In the developed world, energy costs are a relatively low percentage of a health care facility’s budget,” says Jim Ansara, founder and director of BHI. “That’s not true in places like Haiti. BIM gives us the power to understand how design choices affect energy use. We use the model to find ways to keep buildings cool and well lit while minimizing reliance on electricity.”
The BHI design team used its initial Revit models as starting points for the new center’s design. They quickly refined the models to reflect the types of spaces that an emergency and infectious disease facility requires, such as examination and intake areas, along with isolation areas to help curb diseases. While making the change, they began exploring the center’s potential energy needs.
Around the same time, BHI enlisted Microdesk to utilize Autodesk’s Insight cloud service. A BIM powered energy analysis and simulation tool, Insight gave the team a way to explore energy efficiency, thermal comfort, and lighting from the earliest stages of the design process. Microdesk conducting an analysis of energy use, daylighting, and solar capabilities. Various factors were plugged into the Insight system to gain a holistic overview of the building’s capabilities for heating and electricity. This helped guide the project’s most impactful areas of energy-saving including lighting, roof construction, and the HVAC system.
Read the full case study on Microdesk’s website.