How energy efficient is the EEBC? evaluation based on a simulated office building

In this paper, we analyze the recently introduced "Energy Efficient Building Code (EEBC) for Commercial Buildings in Sri Lanka" for its applicability to Sri Lankan office buildings. The focus is on the building envelope and air conditioning requirements of the EEBC and their effect on energy saving. In order to this, we develop a "typical" multi-story office building designed as per the EEBC and simulate its energy and thermal comfort performances using a parametric energy simulation software.

The results reveal that the application EEBC to Sri Lankan commercial buildings will actually increase energy consumption over the present scenario. Based on our analysis we recommend a set of improvements to the EEBC in terms of building envelope and set-point temperature requirements.